S. Korea’s 29th case of COVID-19 raises concerns over possible community spread

Feb 17, 2020, 09:30 am

		0
Local health authorities shut down the emergency room of Korea University Anam Hospital in Seoul on Feb. 16, 2020, following a visit by the country's 29th coronavirus patient./ Source: Yonhap

By AsiaToday reporter Joo Sung-sik

South Korea reported its 29th case of the novel coronavirus or COVID-19 on Sunday, after five consecutive days without a new case, raising concerns over the possible community spread of the virus. The government plans to focus on preventing the spread of the virus at medical institutions and in regional communities by running coronavirus tests on all pneumonia patients hospitalized across the country in the coming days, noting that the latest patient had visited two local medical clinics before being confirmed.

The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) held a briefing on domestic coronavirus infections at the KCDC headquarters in Cheongju on Sunday morning, and said that an 82-year-old South Korean man who had no record of overseas travel tested positive for the virus, bringing the total of confirmed cases in the country to 29.

The KCDC said the new patient visited Korea University Anam Hospital in Seoul on Saturday with a heart problem. The man tested positive for the virus after doctors decided to run coronavirus test when he was found to have pneumonia.

The patient is currently quarantined at Seoul National University Hospital in Seoul, one of the facilities designated by the state for the treatment of the virus. He is reportedly in a stable condition. The patient’s wife has not shown any symptoms of the virus. However, the KCDC said the patient had not traveled overseas nor been in contact with any confirmed patients, suggesting the risk of community-based transmission.

The government believes it now has to focus on preventing the spread of the virus at medical institutaions and in regional communities. “The virus continues to spread rapidly in China, and there are increasing confirmed cases in Japan and Singapore that had no epidemiological correlations,” KCDC director Jung Eun-kyeong said.

“Coronavirus can spread fast even though an infected person has mild symptoms,” Jung said. “There is still a possibility that the virus can spread widely from medical institutions where there are many elderly and sick patients.”

In response, the government plans to run coronavirus tests on all pneumonia patients hospitalized across the country in the coming days in order to strengthen its monitoring system and to further stem the virus’ spread across the country.

“We are in talks with the doctors’ associations to determine to what extent the virus screening will extend, the details of which will be implemented as soon as possible,” Jung said.

#COVID-19 #29th case #South Korea #community spread #coronavirus