WHO expert - Cure for SARS unlikely soon

HONG KONG -- A cure for SARS is unlikely soon, a World Health Organization official said Saturday following a conference that failed to agree on how to treat the deadly virus.

China, which has the most SARS deaths and cases, reported two SARS deaths, both in Beijing, on Saturday but no new infections.

In Toronto, five newborns and their mothers who came in contact with a medical student with SARS were released from 10 days of quarantine Saturday after being declared free of the virus.

Mainland China's new reported deaths raised its death toll from severe acute respiratory syndrome to at least 345, with more than 5,300 cases of infection. Worldwide, SARS has killed at least 794 people and has infected more than 8,400.

Clinical trials difficult

WHO official Dr. Mark Salter told the global conference on managing SARS there are few candidates for clinical trials of SARS drugs as the global outbreak runs its course.

It is "incredibly unlikely" there will be enough patients to conduct valid tests by the time SARS winds down, even if the rules and ethical guidelines are ready, Salter said.

Anti-viral drugs are also best tested at the early stages of the illness before the infection is full-blown, he said.

None of the drugs have been put through the rigors of a truly scientific "double-blind" experiment, said Salter, who works in WHO's communicable disease surveillance and response department.

Delegates at the two-day conference did not agree on a universal SARS treatment plan because of the lack of scientific data, he said.

"Everybody believes that a number of the drugs that are being used are of benefit in certain circumstances, but clinicians and scientists are people who like to have things in facts," he said.

While Hong Kong has reported some success with a combination of the antiviral drug ribavirin and steroids, other countries have had less promising results from the two.

Hong Kong microbiologist Dr. Yuen Kwok-yung reported that another treatment combining an AIDS drug with ribavirin was showing some promise, but also cautioned the drug program has not been verified scientifically.

"No one should have unrealistic expectations," Yuen said.

Hong Kong's total number of infected remained at 1,755 for the third straight day, but authorities Saturday reported the death of a 69-year-old woman who had a history of chronic illness in addition to SARS.

The outbreak in the former British colony appears to be winding down, with the number of new daily infections dropping to less than five in recent weeks.

China's Health Ministry said Saturday that strict control measures would stay in place even though WHO listed a travel advisory Thursday for four regions on the mainland.

The dropping of the travel warnings for China's Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi and Tianjin regions was an "obvious achievement" of China's efforts to control the disease, the ministry said in a statement.

The Toronto scare forced another 20 women and their babies who had low-risk contact with the medical student into home quarantine.

"Tough as it was, everything seems to be OK," said Dr. Donald Low, Mount Sinai hospital's chief microbiologist.

With 33 SARS deaths and 238 cases, Canada is the hardest-hit country outside of Asia.

Taiwan, which has the world's third-highest number of SARS cases and fatalities, reported five new SARS cases Sunday but no new fatalities. The new cases pushed Taiwan's total infections to 699, while 83 have died.

WHO decided Friday to maintain its travel advisory against Taiwan, citing concerns about a cluster of cases reported a week ago.

WHO chief Gro Harlem Brundtland told Swedish radio that although there have been few new infections in worst-hit mainland China and Hong Kong, it was too early to tell whether the disease had peaked.

Brundtland warned that health authorities worldwide may lower their guard and not be ready for a resurgence of the disease.

"There can easily be new outbreaks," Brundtland said. "We have seen it in Canada. We have seen it in Singapore, where people hoped the epidemic was over, but then there was a new outbreak."