South Korea confirmed Sunday three new cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome, bringing the total number of cases in the country to 169.

Two of the three new patients were members of the local medical staff, according to the MERS special response team at the Health Ministry. The newly infected had been on the government’s MERS watch after they were in close contact with confirmed MERS patients,

As of Sunday morning, 43 MERS patients have made a full recovery and were discharged from their hospitals. A total of 101 are still being treated, 14 of whom are in unstable condition.

The government also confirmed the death of a 63-year-old MERS patient on Saturday evening, who had a history of diabetes and myocardial ischemia.

Of the 25 lives claimed by MERS, 18 were men. Nine of the victims were in their 60s, while eight were in their 70s. The youngest MERS victim was aged 49.

All but four MERS-related fatalities had preexisting medical conditions.

About 18.9 percent of the 169 MERS patients were local medical staff, while the rest were either patients already at a hospital -- 46.2 percent -- or their visitors or family members.

The virus infected more men than women -- 61.5 percent to 38.5 percent -- and 50-somethings were the most severely hit age group with 20.7 percent.

As of Sunday, 4,035 people remained in quarantine for possible infection. It marked a 1,162 drop from the day before, indicating that the worst may be over for the outbreak in the country.

Outside of Saudi Arabia, where the disease was first reported in 2012, Korea has the highest number of MERS cases in the world. 

The World Health Organization conducted a joint investigation last week with the Korean government on the country’s MERS situation and concluded that the outbreak in Korea did not meet the standards for a “public health emergency of international concern.” This refers to a situation posing risk to fellow WHO member states while calling for coordinated international response.

While it echoed the government’s stance that there was no evidence of MERS being spread to the general public, the WHO said the outbreak was a “wake-up call” that demonstrates all countries should be on the lookout for the rapid spreading of an infectious disease.

The Health Ministry said that experts in infectious disease from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will visit Korea for “technical cooperation” with local experts on the MERS situation. The ministry is aiming to rein in the outbreak by end-June.

By Yoon Min-sik (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)