Nineteen cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus infection have been reported in 2025 till 21 December, according to a press release issued by the World Health Organization on 24 December. Seventeen of these cases have been reported from Saudi Arabia, and two from France. There have been two fatalities attributed to the disease this year, both in Saudi Arabia. Both cases reported in France were individuals who had recently returned from the Arabian Peninsula.
Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus was first reported in Jordan in 2012, since when there have been 2635 cases reported from 27 countries in all six of the World Heath Organization's regions (Africa, the Americas, Southeast Asia, Europe, the Eastern Mediterranean, and the Western Pacific), with 964 associated fatalities (a case fatality ratio of 37%). However, 84% of these countries (2224 individual infections) have been reported from a single country, Saudi Arabia.
Of the seventeen cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus infection reported in 2025, ten were reported in Riyadh Province, three from the city of Tiaf, two from Najran Province, one from Hail Province, and one from the city of Hafr Al-Batin. Details of the French cases, other than that they occurred in individuals who had recently returned from the Arabian Peninsula, are not available.
Both of the infections reported in France were in the month of December and are still under investigation. These cases bring the total number of reported cases in France to four, with two previous cases in 2013, also in individuals who had recently returned from the Arabian Peninsula.
Middle East Respiratory Syndrome is a viral respiratory infection caused by the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus, a form of positive sense single-strand RNA Virus. Approximately 36% of patients with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome have died, though this may be an overestimate of the true mortality rate, as mild cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus may be missed by existing surveillance systems, and the case fatality ratio is calculated based only on laboratory-confirmed cases.
Humans are infected with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus from direct or indirect contact with Dromedary Camels, which are the natural host and zoonotic source of the Virus. Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus has demonstrated the ability to transmit between Humans. So far, non-sustained Human-to-Human transmission has occurred among close contacts and in healthcare settings and outside of the healthcare setting, there has been limited Human-to-Human transmission.
Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus infections range from showing no symptoms (asymptomatic) or mild respiratory symptoms, to severe acute respiratory disease and death. A typical presentation of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome disease is fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Pneumonia is a common finding, but not always present. Gastrointestinal symptoms, including diarrhoea, have also been reported. Severe illness can cause respiratory failure that requires mechanical ventilation and support in an intensive care unit. The virus appears to cause more severe disease in older people, persons with weakened immune systems, and those with co-morbidities or chronic diseases such as renal disease, cancer, chronic lung disease, and diabetes.
No vaccine or specific treatment is currently available, although several Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-specific vaccines and therapeutics are in development. Treatment is supportive and based on the patient’s clinical condition and symptoms.
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