Moroccan researcher optimistic medicine will ultimately vanquish SARS
Morocco, Health, 4/26/2003

Ongoing medical research will ultimately vanquish the Severe Acute Respiratory Disease (SARS), said Moroccan doctor, Bensalem El Kohen, who authored fifty years ago in Paris a thesis on cases similar to SARS.

In an interview run on Friday by the Chinese News agency, El Kohen explained that researchers have then observed symptoms of severe acute respiratory diseases in some adults "on which we have made a few personal footnotes." In his thesis, El Kohen brought out his "worries" concerning these pneumonia cases "that were not actually like those known of bacterial origin," adding that they rather stemmed from a viral cause." Introducing his yellowing thesis titled: "A contribution to the clinical, radiological and biological study of the viral severe acute respiratory disease in adults" (June 27th, 1952), the Moroccan researcher recalled the rationale behind his work, saying that "the first doctors discovered the bacteria and we had to contribute research on the virus." Although symptoms described then were less severe, the Moroccan doctor who was then an intern at the Muslim hospital of Bobigny (Paris), already described "a new pneumonia-related pathology," voicing hope to see other researchers study the disease.

Bensalem El Kohen, who regretted not having conducted more research on this subject, calls for more vigilance to fend off SARS progress.

The Chinese news agency interviewed the Moroccan doctor following an article on him published recently by Moroccan daily "L'Opinion."

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