Philippines has 3rd nCoV case

Woman back in China; 1st Pinoy patient recorded

MANILA, Philippines — A 60-year-old Chinese woman from Wuhan City is the Philippines’ third confirmed 2019 novel coronavirus acute respiratory disease (nCoV ARD) case, the Department of Health (DOH) reported yesterday, while a Filipino seafarer aboard a cruise ship docked in Yokohama, Japan has tested positive for the deadly virus, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).

The Chinese woman’s case brings to three the total number of confirmed cases of the virus infection in the country. The first was a 38-year-old Chinese woman now recovering, while the second one was her partner, a 44-year-old Chinese man who died of severe pneumonia last weekend.

Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo said the third confirmed case arrived in Cebu City from Wuhan via Hong Kong on Jan. 20 and immediately traveled to Bohol.

“She was not feeling well, so she just stayed at the hotel. On Jan. 22, she consulted a private hospital  in Bohol after experiencing fever and coryza (head cold),” Domingo said in a press conference.

He noted that two samples were collected from the patient on Jan. 23 and 24.

The Jan. 24 sample was tested at the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) in Muntinlupa City and at the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory in Melbourne, Australia and they turned out negative for nCoV.

 “Results from the tests came back negative last Jan. 29 (RITM) and Jan. 30 (Melbourne), and upon the recovery of the patient, she was discharged and allowed to return to China via Cebu last Jan. 31,” Domingo said.

On Feb. 3, however, the DOH was notified by the RITM that the Jan. 23 sample that it examined tested positive for the virus.

It could be that when the Jan. 24 sample was collected, the patient was already “toward the end of her illness,” according to Domingo.

“The picture is (that) the patient was infected but was getting better and she turned negative on the 24th of January and a week later, she was discharged – negative for the virus,” he said.

The DOH had given assurance that the Epidemiology Bureau (EB) had already initiated “contact tracing of persons who interacted with or were in close proximity to the patient who took an Air Asia flight.”

The EB and Bureau of Quarantine are also coordinating with the airline to identify the patient’s co-passengers on her way to the Philippines.

Domingo, however, stressed that there is no need to track down the co-passengers on the plane back to China because she has already recovered when she left the country.

Close contacts

Domingo said that as of noon yesterday, they have contacted 203 close contacts of the infected Chinese couple.

Of the 203 contacts, 15 have developed symptoms, including three health workers who took care of the couple.

The 15 contacts are now in hospital isolation except for one who refused to be qurantined.

He maintained that the DOH is coordinating with the concerned local government unit and the police to put this contact in isolation.

Data showed that of the 203 contacts, 188 do not have symptoms but have been placed on home quarantine.

The DOH has urged the couple’s co-passengers from Cebu Pacific flight 5J 241 from Hong Kong to Cebu on Jan. 20 and 21; Cebu Pacific flight DG 6519 from Cebu to Dumaguete on Jan.  21; and Philippine Airlines flight PR2542 from Dumaguete to Manila on Jan. 25 to cooperate with DOH representatives who will get in touch with them for assessment.

133 PUIs

There are now 133 PUIs for nCoV in the country, according to Domingo. Of this, 115 are currently admitted and isolated, while 16 have been discharged under strict monitoring.

Among the PUIs, 63 are Filipinos, 54 are Chinese and 16 are other nationalities. Thirty-two of them have history of travel to Wuhan.

There was one PUI – a 29-year-old Chinese man – who died of severe pnuemonia. He was infected with human immunodeficiency virus.

Domingo reminded the public that practicing proper hand hygiene and cough etiquette are still the best ways to protect one’s self from this virus.

“I am calling on all Filipinos to cooperate. In such trying times, we should not let our fears overwhelm us and cause us to overreact. We need to work together,” he said.

1st Pinoy with nCoV

Meanwhile, the Filipino seafarer and nine others aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship docked off the port of Yokohama, Japan have tested positive for nCoV, the DFA said yesterday.

The DFA added that the Philippine embassy in Tokyo is closely and actively monitoring the welfare of Filipinos on board the cruise ship under a quarantine implemented by the Japanese government.

There are 538 Filipinos aboard the ship, including seven passengers.

The Princess Cruises company said a Filipino seafarer tested positive for the deadly virus, while the other passengers who tested positive are three from Hong Kong, three from Japan, two from Australia and one from the United States.

The cruise ship was quarantined when one of the passengers tested positive for the virus.

An 80-year-old man boarded the Diamond Princess in Yokohama on Jan. 20 and disembarked in Hong Kong on Jan. 25. He tested positive in Hong Kong on Jan. 31, and was deemed to have contracted the virus.

“Since then and after this time, 10 persons aboard the cruise ship, including one Filipino, have tested positive for the virus and will be transferred to a health care facility,” the DFA said in a statement.

The other passengers have been asked to remain on board the ship for the required 14-day quarantine.

Princess Cruises said it has placed 3,700 passengers and crew under mandatory quarantine after the 10 passengers tested positive for the virus.

Of the 31 people who have been tested, 10 cases were positive for the virus, according to Japan’s Health Ministry.

“The embassy is in constant communication with the remaining Filipinos on board and is closely coordinating with Japanese authorities to provide them all possible assistance,” the DFA said.

The company said the 10 persons would be taken ashore by the Japanese Coast Guard watercraft and transported to local hospitals for care by shoreside Japanese medical professionals.

The ship will be quarantined for at least 14 days as required by the Japanese Ministry of Health.

Meanwhile, DFA spokesperson Eduardo Meñez said the government agency is still coordinating permits, clearances and protocols with the Chinese government for the repatriation of Filipinos in Wuhan and Hubei province.

About 300 Filipinos in China mostly from Wuhan, where the nCoV strain was first discovered, have expressed their desire to be repatriated.

The DFA said it is ready to repatriate Filipinos in Wuhan City and the rest of Hubei province who wish to come home, subject to China’s rules on disease containment, including immigration clearance and quarantine process.

The DFA is making available special flights from Hubei province to the Philippines. Filipinos in the area who wish to be repatriated should contact the Philippine Consulate General in Shanghai.

The Consulate estimated there are 300 Filipinos in the province, including 150 in Wuhan.

Upon arrival in the Philippines, DFA said, Filipino repatriates will be subject to 14 days of mandatory quarantine per guidelines of the DOH. – With Pia Lee-Brago, Gilbert Bayoran, Edu Punay