India - Man with travel history to Saudi Arabia hospitalized in isolation as suspected nCoV novel coronavirus case - tests negative

[sharon sanders]

hat tip Makoto

40-year-old man Mumbai's first suspected Gulf virus case
Sumitra Deb Roy, TNN | Aug 15, 2013, 01.28 AM IST


MUMBAI: In the first suspected case of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in the city, a Vashi resident has been quarantined at Kasturba Hospital in Chinchpokli.

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The 40-year-old man was admitted to the hospital's ward 30, meant for infectious diseases, on Wednesday afternoon with complaints of fever and a progressing pneumonia (inflammation of lungs). The patient had returned to India on August 12 after spending 35 days in Saudi Arabia.

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After the patient tested negative for H1N1, doctors suspected that he had caught the virus during his stay in Saudi Arabia. His samples have been sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune.

A civic official said, "The patient has been started on antiviral oseltamivir. He is responding well to medication." The NIV report is expected to arrive by Friday.



more...

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/40-year-old-man-Mumbais-first-suspected-Gulf-virus-case/articleshow/21834219.cms

[alert]

Re: India - Man with travel history to Saudi Arabia hospitalized in isolation as suspected nCoV novel coronavirus case - tests pending

A civic official said, "The patient has been started on antiviral oseltamivir. He is responding well to medication." The NIV report is expected to arrive by Friday.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/c...w/21834219.cms

Oseltamivir is Tamiflu, which is a good treatment for influenza, but absolutely useless against nCoV, which is not influenza at all.

So either Tamiflu is being administered in case he turns out to have H1N1 instead of (or in addition to) nCoV, or the entire report is confusing H1N1 for nCoV. Either way, positive response to Tamiflu argues against an nCoV diagnosis.

[IanM]

Re: India - Man with travel history to Saudi Arabia hospitalized in isolation as suspected nCoV novel coronavirus case - tests pending

Yes. I thought the same.

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: India - Man with travel history to Saudi Arabia hospitalized in isolation as suspected nCoV novel coronavirus case - tests pending

There has been a large number of returning migrant workers from KSA to India and other countries over the past several months resulting from a change to the immigrant labor laws in KSA (see below). This might increase the possibility of global spread and detection of infected individuals. The time frame seems to be too short for him to have picked up flu in India, where both H1N1 and H3N2 are circulating, so whatever it is probably originated in KSA. - Ro

20,000 Indians left Saudi Arabia after announcement of new labour law
Daniel P George, TNN | Aug 15, 2013, 04.00 PM IST

CHENNAI: Nearly 20,000 Indians, including an estimated 5,000 people from Tamil Nadu, have left Saudi Arabia after the kingdom announced the new labour law called Nitaqat, says a diplomat at the Indian embassy in Riyadh.

Speaking to TOI over telephone from Riyadh, Indian embassy's deputy chief of mission Sibi George on Thursday said that every Indian overstaying in Saudi Arabia had been given a chance to correct their legal status. "They could either find a new job or go back to India and return without any penalty," he said.
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http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/nri/middle-east-news/20000-Indians-left-Saudi-Arabia-after-announcement-of-new-labour-law/articleshow/21844188.cms?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=timesofindia

[sharon sanders]

Re: India - Man with travel history to Saudi Arabia hospitalized in isolation as suspected nCoV novel coronavirus case - tests pending

Helen Branswell @HelenBranswell 1m
MT @HaertlG: @WHO has no news on today on suspect #MERS case in Mumbai or Korean man who died of suspected MERS in #KSA.

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: India - Man with travel history to Saudi Arabia hospitalized in isolation as suspected nCoV novel coronavirus case - tests pending

Quarantined Navi Mumbai man tests negative for MERS-CoV
Saturday, Aug 17, 2013, 10:25 IST | Agency: DNA
DNA Correspondent

The 40-year-old Navi Mumbai resident, who was quarantined in Kasturba Hospital for suspected Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-coronavirus (MERS-CoV), tested negative and will be discharged soon, said the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation?s health official on Friday.
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Dr Mangala Gomare, epidemiologist (BMC) said: ?His MERS-CoV report came this morning confirming that he is not suffering from the disease. He also tested negative for swine flu.?
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Meanwhile, the BMC has kept its swine flu wards dedicated for MERS-CoV suspected cases. ?Swine flu no longer requires quarantine and can be treated like a flu case. We have therefore kept the ward now for MERS-CoV suspects,? said a senior doctor from Kasturba Hospital, BMC?s only infectious disease hospital in Byculla.
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http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/1875566/report-quarantined-navi-mumbai-man-tests-negative-for-mers-cov