Recovered Patient Urges Public not to Fear SARS

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, April 08, 2003

Recovered Patient Urges Public not to Fear SARS

"Atypical pneumonia is a severe disease, but curable; the month I spent fighting it was a nightmare, but I finally woke up", said Cai Weiping, a doctor in Guangzhou who returned to work after recovering from SARS.

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Cai Weiping, a doctor in the capital of south China's Guangdong Province, returned to work earlier this month after recovering from atypical pneumonia.

"Atypical pneumonia is a severe disease, but curable," Cai said in an interview, "The month I spent fighting it was a nightmare, but I finally woke up."

"We should not fear it," he said.

Medical workers are vulnerable to atypical pneumonia since they have close contact with infected patients.

Cai came down with a fever at midnight on February 13 and was sent to the hospital two days later.

"I had been working hard and was totally worn out during the period leading up to February 13," he said.

During the first six days, he suffered from fever and a slight bowel disorder, as if he had caught the flu, but he had no cough, Cai said.

On the sixth day, doctors diagnosed his illness as atypical pneumonia after discovering the shadowy image in his lung x-ray.

"On the tenth day, the severe fever hit me again, and I began to have difficulty breathing, " he said, "This is what we usually call the 'peak'."

Assisted by an artificial respirator and treated with antibiotics, hormones and nutrients, his condition improved and his breathing difficulty was gradually alleviated.

Cai left the hospital on March 13, just a month after he was infected with the disease.

"It was torturous to breathe while I was ill," he said, "But I was cured of the disease thanks to proper treatment."

Cai stayed home for about 20 days before returning to work.

According to the public health administration of Guangdong, 911 atypical pneumonia patients have been cured thus far, accounting for 79 percent of the total 1,153 patients.

"I continue to tell my patients to stand up to the disease instead of being frightened and frustrated," Cai said.

Guangdong Continues to Fight Against SARS

South China's Guangdong Province reported 53 new cases of atypical pneumonia from April 1 to 7, an average of 7.57 cases per day, and the provincial health department Tuesday pledged to continue to fight atypical pneumonia.

Huang Huahua, governor of Guangdong, told Xinhua that the province will make more strenuous efforts to educate the public on prevention from the disease.

The WHO medical team, which arrived on April 3, has investigated the prevention and treatment of the disease in Guangdong and offered some useful advice on action taken in other countries and regions, Huang said.

The WHO and Chinese experts have exchanged ideas on how to fight the disease, he added.

Local doctors, together with the expert team sent by the central government, have developed new treatments for the epidemic, Huang said.

The government suggests regular exercise in order to maintain good health, Huang said.

More efforts are being made in schools and kindergartens to create a clean and safe environment for children, while teachers are training to deal with emergencies in the event that students are infected, he added.

Meanwhile, the 93rd China Export Commodities Fair will open in Guangzhou on April 15.

The government has taken strict precautionary measures to guarantee the safety and health of people attending the fair, Huang said.

Hotels, exhibition centers and vehicles will be totally disinfected, he added.

"It is safe to come to Guangdong, whether for business or sightseeing," Huang said.

The Guangdong Provincial Health Department said Guangzhou, the capital city of the province, reported 36 of the 53 new cases, 70.2 percent fewer than in the same period last month.

The other 17 new cases were detected in seven other cities in the province, the health department said.

Two medical workers were infected during the period, it added.

In addition, 82 atypical pneumonia patients were cured and three died during the seven day period.

To date, a total of 993 patients have recovered from the disease in Guangdong, accounting for 82.3 percent of the total number infected, 3.3 percentage points higher than at the end of last month.

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