Suspected coronavirus case in Mohali: Patient’s report expected soon

The patient had come to the hospital on Friday with a complaint of fever, however, no other symptoms associated with the virus, such as chest pain, discomfort in breathing and other respiratory ailments were reported. “He has developed no other symptom as of yet, he had a fever of about 101 degrees on Monday, which has come down a little since then, but there is no other development as of yet. We just have to wait for the test results,” adds Dr. Suri.

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Currently, only the National Institute of Virology in Pune has been authorized by the government to conduct the test for the 2019 n-CoV. Hence, the patient’s samples have been sent to the institute in Pune and the results are expected to come by Wednesday afternoon. The testing kit used for the virus takes six to seven hours to produce results.

The patient has been kept in an isolated ward by the hostel authorities, however, no separate ward has been dedicated to the potential coronavirus suspects. Sources at PGIMER said that the portion of the ward where the patient is currently placed has been cordoned off from the rest of the ward to minimize contact with other patients in the isolated ward. “If more patients come, we will be able to make space for them in that area as well, without compromising the other patients’ health,” says Dr. Suri.

The patient’s family, including his wife, daughter, and mother, have shown no symptoms of the virus as of yet and have been asked to stay at home. According to the guidelines provided by the government, anyone who has been in contact with a suspected patient of coronavirus, but are asymptomatic as of yet, can only be advised to stay quarantined at home and limit their social contact.

Although no health advisory has been issued by the government yet, regarding the precautions and symptoms to monitor the virus, the government issued a health and travel advisory on January 25 for Indian citizens planning to travel to China or those who are currently in China or have recently returned from the country. According to the advisory, Indian citizens have been asked to avoid non-essential travel to China. Those who are already in China have been asked to take necessary precautions and monitor their health closely.

Furthermore, those who feel sick after returning from China have been asked to report about it on the helpline number 011-23978046.

Authorities at Chandigarh International Airport said that they have made arrangements for the awareness and prevention of Corona Virus at the airport and the airport staff is working in collaboration with the Punjab State Government Medical Team to scan the arriving travelers, using a thermal sensor to monitor their body temperature.