Federal health officials are investigating whether a worker who traveled to Asia may have infected a co-worker with a respiratory virus that may be linked to severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Health officials are trying to determine if a 60-year-old woman in Florida may have infected a 47-year-old co-worker, according to the Associated Press.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cautions that it is too early to tell whether the co-workers have SARS or some other illness. But the CDC says the co-workers show symptoms that suggest the respiratory illness.

"There's certainly no indication of spread beyond that point, and the health department is aggressively taking the appropriate steps to make sure that they have communicated with all of the exposed people or potentially exposed people and are doing the right things to contain any additional spread, should this indeed turn out to be SARS," says Dr. Julie Gerberding, head of the CDC. "But it's far too early to say that at the moment."

Previously it appeared infected people only spread the virus through close contact with family members or health workers, according to the AP report. In the United States, there have been nine reported cases in family members and three in health workers. The other 166 cases involve people infected while traveling in Asia.

The CDC says it has received more than 13,000 inquiries about SARS from around the country.