Investigation of an imported case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in Florence, Italy, May to June 2013

On 31 May 2013, the first case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in Italy was laboratory confirmed in a previously healthy adult man, who developed pneumonia with moderate respiratory distress after returning from a holiday in Jordan. Two secondary cases were identified through contact tracing, among family members and colleagues who had not previously travelled abroad. Both secondary cases developed mild illness. All three patients recovered fully. On 31 May 2013, the National Influenza Centre at the Istituto Superiore Sanita (NIC-ISS) in Rome, Italy, confirmed the first case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in a patient, hospitalised in Florence (Tuscany region), Italy, who had just spent a vacation in Amman, Jordan. Two secondary cases of MERS-CoV were subsequently detected among close contacts. We here report the public health investigation carried out and the identification and follow-up of the three patients' contacts.