TY - JOUR AU - Jernigan, John A. AU - Low, Donald E. AU - Helfand, Rita F. T1 - Combining Clinical and Epidemiologic Features for Early Recognition of SARS T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 2004 VL - 10 IS - 2 SP - 327 SN - 1080-6059 AB - Early recognition and rapid initiation of infection control precautions are currently the most important strategies for controlling severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). No rapid diagnostic tests currently exist that can rule out SARS among patients with febrile respiratory illnesses. Clinical features alone cannot with certainty distinguish SARS from other respiratory illnesses rapidly enough to inform early management decisions. A balanced approach to screening that allows early recognition of SARS without unnecessary isolation of patients with other respiratory illnesses will require clinicians not only to look for suggestive clinical features but also to routinely seek epidemiologic clues suggestive of SARS coronavirus exposure. Key epidemiologic risk factors include 1) exposure to settings where SARS activity is suspected or documented, or 2) in the absence of such exposure, epidemiologic linkage to other persons with pneumonia (i.e., pneumonia clusters), or 3) exposure to healthcare settings. When combined with clinical findings, these epidemiologic features provide a possible strategic framework for early recognition of SARS. KW - SARS KW - Coronavirus KW - diagnosis KW - epidemiology KW - clinical features KW - SARS-CoV DO - 10.3201/eid1002.030741 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/10/2/03-0741_article ER - End of Reference