South Korea reported no additional cases of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome for the 17th straight day on Wednesday, signaling an apparent end to the outbreak that has claimed 36 lives here so far.

The number of fatalities has also remained flat for the past 12 days.

So far, 186 people have been diagnosed with the viral disease since the country reported its first case on May 20.

As of Wednesday, 13 of those diagnosed still remained hospitalized as the remaining 137 have been discharged from hospitals following complete recoveries, according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

The ministry has said out of the 13 MERS patients, 11 have already tested negative for the disease although some of them are still recovering from other complications caused by MERS.

In addition to those diagnosed, two others were currently in isolation as suspected cases. The number dropped from five on the previous day.,

Nearly 16,700 people here have been subject to isolation for possible infection after coming in close contact with MERS patients, while 16,690 of them have been released after showing no symptoms of MERS for over the known maximum incubation period of 14 days for the disease.

MERS is a viral respiratory disease that was first reported in Saudi Arabia in 2012.

The disease has since claimed over 530 lives throughout the world, posting a fatality rate of about 36 percent.

In South Korea, the fatality rate of the disease stands at 19.4 percent.

Ministry officials earlier said the country may be able to declare an end to the outbreak in mid-August, or 28 days after the last patient is declared completely recovered. (Yonhap)