MERS-CoV: time to reassess the case-fatality rate

MERS-CoV remains an important zoonotic threat. Since its emergence in 2012, 2649 laboratory-confirmed cases and 960 deaths have been reported globally as of Aug 31, 2026, yielding a crude case-fatality ratio (CFR) of approximately 36%.1 The estimated CFR has become one of the defining epidemiological characteristics of MERS-CoV. Yet, more than 14 years after the virus was identified, is it still appropriate to rely on a single cumulative CFR without greater contextualisation?

Published in The Lancet Microbe. The abstract is shown as published and remains the work of its authors; read the full article at the source.

doi.org/10.1016/j.lanmic.2026.101550