An unexplained respiratory illness sickened 44 people in Wuhan, China, prompting concern about a possible recurrence of SARS. Authorities ruled out influenza, avian flu, adenovirus, and other common infections, though SARS-related coronavirus had not yet been confirmed or dismissed. The World Health Organization noted the uncertainty while local police punished individuals for spreading unverified outbreak rumors. Experts warned that if the virus were a new strain, close monitoring would be necessary. Early reports suggested no clear human-to-human transmission, differentiating it from the 2002–2003 SARS outbreak, which killed hundreds in China and spread internationally.
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