WHO set to remove Singapore from list of areas with recent local transmission of SARS

The United Nations World Health Organization is set to remove Singapore from the list of areas with recent local transmission of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), the agency said today.

The change in status will be official tomorrow following a 20-day period – twice the incubation period for the disease – in which no new cases have been reported. Singapore has had 206 probable cases of the deadly respiratory illness.

“From the start, Singapore’s handling of its SARS outbreak has been exemplary,” said Dr. David Heymann, Executive Director for Communicable Diseases at WHO. “This is an inspiring victory that should make all of us optimistic that SARS can be contained everywhere.”

As of today, there have been a total of 8,317 cases of SARS, with 754 deaths in 28 countries.