Canadian health officials admit they let their guard down too soon, leading to more cases of --and deaths from -- SARS.
The World Health Organization has returned Toronto to its list of areas where there is local transmission of the SARS virus.
(CNN) -- A 57-year-old man has died of SARS in Toronto, Ontario, bringing Canada's death toll from the virus to 30, Canadian health officials said Friday.
Meanwhile, thousands remained quarantined as Canada struggles to contain a second SARS outbreak.
The death comes a day after Canadian officials said they would begin using a broader definition of what constitutes a SARS case.
Under the new guidelines, the number of suspected and probable cases in Ontario's latest outbreak has grown from 33 to 43, including those patients who died but whose causes of death have not been determined. On Thursday, the national agency Health Canada said that of the 33 probable cases, four people have died.
In addition, another 149 people are at "various stages of investigation," said Dr. Colin D'Cunha, Ontario's public health commissioner.
Some of the latter group are likely to be classified as probable cases, but D'Cunha put the number in perspective by pointing out that during the height of Toronto's initial outbreak, in March, as many as 3,000 people were under investigation. Fewer than 300 ever became "probable" cases.
In both probable and suspect cases, patients have respiratory symptoms and fever. A case is deemed probable if the patient also has lung illness confirmed by an X-ray.
The increase is partly due to the recent adoption by Ontario officials and Health Canada of the broader case definition of SARS -- severe acute respiratory syndrome -- recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and every other country.
In addition to the rising number of cases, D'Cunha said more than 7,800 people are now in home quarantine, including 444 health care workers. Unlike isolation, which applies to those with SARS symptoms, quarantine is for asymptomatic people who may have come into contact with SARS sufferers.
Several hundred more health care workers are in working quarantine, which means they may continue to work around patients as long as they follow strict guidelines, such as taking private transportation to their jobs and donning protective wear that must be changed with each new patient.
Although officials said quarantines are effective, there were hints of a tougher policy. D'Cunha said some high school students had broken their quarantine, and if they continued to do so, they could be forced into hospital isolation.
Dr. James Young, Ontario's commissioner of public security, said hospitals were "overburdened" and urged people to avoid them if possible.
The World Health Organization has returned Toronto to its list of areas where there is local transmission of the SARS virus.
(CNN) -- A 57-year-old man has died of SARS in Toronto, Ontario, bringing Canada's death toll from the virus to 30, Canadian health officials said Friday.
Meanwhile, thousands remained quarantined as Canada struggles to contain a second SARS outbreak.
The death comes a day after Canadian officials said they would begin using a broader definition of what constitutes a SARS case.
Under the new guidelines, the number of suspected and probable cases in Ontario's latest outbreak has grown from 33 to 43, including those patients who died but whose causes of death have not been determined. On Thursday, the national agency Health Canada said that of the 33 probable cases, four people have died.
In addition, another 149 people are at "various stages of investigation," said Dr. Colin D'Cunha, Ontario's public health commissioner.
Some of the latter group are likely to be classified as probable cases, but D'Cunha put the number in perspective by pointing out that during the height of Toronto's initial outbreak, in March, as many as 3,000 people were under investigation. Fewer than 300 ever became "probable" cases.
In both probable and suspect cases, patients have respiratory symptoms and fever. A case is deemed probable if the patient also has lung illness confirmed by an X-ray.
The increase is partly due to the recent adoption by Ontario officials and Health Canada of the broader case definition of SARS -- severe acute respiratory syndrome -- recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and every other country.
In addition to the rising number of cases, D'Cunha said more than 7,800 people are now in home quarantine, including 444 health care workers. Unlike isolation, which applies to those with SARS symptoms, quarantine is for asymptomatic people who may have come into contact with SARS sufferers.
Several hundred more health care workers are in working quarantine, which means they may continue to work around patients as long as they follow strict guidelines, such as taking private transportation to their jobs and donning protective wear that must be changed with each new patient.
Although officials said quarantines are effective, there were hints of a tougher policy. D'Cunha said some high school students had broken their quarantine, and if they continued to do so, they could be forced into hospital isolation.
Dr. James Young, Ontario's commissioner of public security, said hospitals were "overburdened" and urged people to avoid them if possible.
