China - Original COVID-19 coronavirus news thread: weeks 1 - 4 (December 30, 2019 - January 25, 2020)

[Shiloh]

Source: https://www.hk01.com/%E7%AA%81%E7%99...82%B3%E6%92%AD

Google translation:

Wuhan Pneumonia] CUHK students buy a large number of N95 masks
Burst
Written by: Yang Wanting, Lin Zhenhua
2020-01-05 22:37
Last updated: 2020-01-05 23:27

An outbreak of pneumonia of unknown cause occurred in Wuhan in the Mainland, and a girl from the Chinese University of Hong Kong also visited Wuhan and later developed fever, respiratory infections or pneumonia. A 20-year-old female student developed fever and symptoms of upper respiratory tract infection after returning to Hong Kong from Wuhan. She went to Ren'an Hospital for treatment and was refused. She was eventually sent to a public hospital. It is reported that she lived in the Bethlehem dormitory (Bosu) of United College, and the students were heartbroken and worried that the epidemic would break out. They wore masks to prevent the epidemic, and some students bought multiple N95 masks. Some students said that because many mainland students lived in Bosu and adjacent dormitories, they feared that they would be infected after returning to the mainland and spread inside the school. Therefore, students and workers have put on masks in the past few days. Some mainland students said they were not worried about the outbreak of pneumonia, and thought that the school would do a good job of cleaning and disinfection.
The male surnamed Li and the female surnamed Zheng said that they had been wearing masks for the past few days. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)

The male surnamed Li and the female surnamed Zheng said that they had been wearing masks for the past few days. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)

The male surname Li and the female surname Zheng wore masks at Bethlehem's dormitory to understand the situation. They stated that they had begun to wear masks after learning of suspected cases in Hong Kong in the past few days. There were more mainland students in Bethlehem's dormitory and they were worried about them. They can be infected, so everyone wears a mask to protect themselves. The students and co-workers of Bethlehem's dormitory and its adjacent dormitories have all put on masks. "They are worried that there are more mainland students and it is more difficult to track down and go to Wuhan." They said they had not received a reminder from the school to strengthen the awareness of epidemic prevention.

Another student Ye said that after learning that a female student in the dormitory had a fever in Wuhan, a hospital person went to the dormitory and the female student was sent to the hospital. He was worried about an outbreak, so he had prepared a large number of N95 masks, but he did not see the school disinfection and cleaning. He pointed out that he lived on a different floor from the female student, and no cleaning was planned.

Lin, who lives in Bosu, pointed out that because tomorrow is the beginning of the semester, he will return to the dormitory to prepare. He said that the female students suspected of having a fever lived on the fifth floor, and the student group said that those in protective clothing had gone to the fifth floor to clean. Since there are many mainland students living in the dormitory, I am worried that some students will get sick in the Mainland and spread in the dormitory. He pointed out that only masks could be used for prevention.

Chen from Shanghai said that he thinks the school will do the disinfection well and do n’t worry about the outbreak of pneumonia, and he will step up his cleaning. "I think it ’s not an abnormal thing if there is any (someone infected), because there may be some students from Wuhan Come accidentally with pneumonia. "But he believes the school will clean and disinfect.
The schoolgirl with a fever suspected of living in Bosu. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)
CUHK students purchased a large number of N95 masks. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)
CUHK students purchased a large number of N95 masks. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)
The boarder put on a mask. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)
Some residents did not wear masks. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)
Chen from Shanghai. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)
Classmate Lin. (Photo by Lin Zhenhua)

The Chinese University of Hong Kong responded to the incident and stated that a student of CUHK returned to Hong Kong on December 29 and felt unwell on January 4. After returning to the dormitory this morning (5), he went out to a private hospital for treatment. He then went to the hospital in Shenzhen to follow up on his own. The student returned to the dormitory in the evening. Accompanied by the ambulance staff, she and her roommates went to a public hospital for further examination.

CUHK stated that the university then cleaned the student's room, residential floor and public places with bleach water in accordance with the guidelines of the CHP to protect the health of the students. It also posted the CHP's health guidelines on the dormitory notice board for students' reference . The dormitory will also provide surgical masks and alcohol hand rubs for residents. If students feel uncomfortable or have concerns, they can go to the University Health Department for examination.
Earlier, people wearing protective clothing went in and out of Bosu. (Picture of CUHK Secrets)

Earlier, people wearing protective clothing went in and out of Bosu. (Picture of CUHK Secrets)

[Commonground]

1/6/20 CUHK student tests negative for pneumonia: source

Excerpt:
Sources say a Chinese University student who fell ill on Sunday after visiting Wuhan last month has tested negative for pneumonia, but positive for coronavirus.

The mainland student was sent to Prince of Wales Hospital after showing symptoms of an upper respiratory tract infection, raising concerns that she might have caught the mysterious pneumonia that broke out in Wuhan earlier this month.

The university said that as a precaution it had already deployed workers to conduct a thorough cleaning at the dormitory the student stays at.

Many of the students entering and leaving the dormitory building were seen wearing face masks.

https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1501243-20200106.htm

[Treyfish]

Coronavirus but not pneumonia

[sharon sanders]

Hong Kong - 6 Wuhan-related cases reported


January 6, 2020


The Hospital Authority says public hospitals, as of noon today and over the past 24 hours, admitted six people who had been to Wuhan in the past 14 days.



The patients presented symptoms of fever, respiratory infection or pneumonia.



The authority said the patients - three men and three women aged between two and 65 - are in a stable condition and are being treated in isolation at United Christian, Queen Elizabeth, Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole, Prince of Wales and Tuen Mun hospitals.



The authority has sent specimens to the Department of Health for testing and will keep monitoring their conditions.



Public hospitals have reported 21 such cases to the department since December 31. Seven of these patients have been discharged

https://www.news.gov.hk/eng/2020/01/...ry&name=health

[Shiloh]

Source: https://news.mingpao.com/ins/%e6%b8%...87%ba%e9%99%a2

Monday, January 6, 2020

[Wuhan Pneumonia] News: Women from Wuhan came to Hong Kong with fever and shadows in their lungs and were discharged last night in violation of medical advice (20:18)
Ruttonjee Hospital (profile picture)
Picture 1-1-Ruttonjee Hospital (Profile picture)

The Hospital Authority informed yesterday (5th) that Ruttonjee Hospital had received a case of fever from a 45-year-old woman who came from Hong Kong to Wuhan yesterday. As of yesterday, the Centre for Health Protection had not released the test results of its samples. The newspaper received information indicating that the woman was a mainlander. She departed from the northeast of the mainland on January 1 and arrived in Wuhan on January 3. She developed fever and coughing on the same day. She arrived in Hong Kong as a tourist on January 4, and January 5 I went to Ruttonjee Hospital to seek medical treatment. She had a fever and severe cough on admission. A lung X-ray examination revealed a shadow on the lower left side of her lungs. Since the woman had been to Wuhan within 14 days, the hospital arranged for her to stay in an isolation ward and report the case to the Health Protection Center .

[20:18] The Hospital Authority replied that the patient had no fever or pneumonia symptoms during his stay in the hospital and was in stable condition. She asked to leave the hospital that night. The hospital considered the clinical situation of the patient and her rapid test was negative for general viruses (including flu). The medical staff also informed the patient about medical advice and risks. After consulting the Department of Health, the hospital provided discharge information to the self-discharged patient.

The Hospital Authority said that public hospitals have always had a rigorous mechanism for receiving patients with symptoms from high-risk areas of infectious diseases, and all medical staff have been reminded that patients should be quarantined as soon as possible in case of suspected cases, and the relevant cases should be notified as soon as possible This will allow the Department of Health to continue to follow up testing, epidemiological tracking and other work related to the prevention of the spread of infectious diseases.

[19:45] The Department of Health responded that Ruttonjee Hospital yesterday notified the Centre for Health Protection of a related case involving a 45-year-old female patient admitted to the hospital. The patient reported symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections since January 4. He had traveled to Wuhan before the onset of the disease but did not visit Wuhan's wet market or seafood market. Later, Ruttonjee Hospital informed the center that the patient requested discharge and was discharged the same night.

As "new infectious diseases of importance to public health" are currently not reportable diseases as specified in Chapter 599 of the Prevention and Control of Diseases Ordinance, patients who suspect a case are unwilling to cooperate (such as refusing to accept isolation or refusal Conducting quarantine inspections), the Department of Health is not in a position to deal with it.

[17:25] The female patient reported that she needed to return to the Shatin Emperor Hotel to take care of her daughter and asked to be discharged. Ruttonjee Hospital responded to the situation by consulting the Department of Health. The Department of Health had no legal basis to issue an isolation order to the patient. Fang finally discharged the female patient from hospital at 11 pm on January 5th and listed it as a "discharge against medical advice" (DAMA) case. At that time, there were no test results of the female patient sample.

[Shiloh]

Source: http://std.stheadline.com/instant/ar...AA%A2%E6%9F%A5
Hong Kong
[Wuhan Pneumonia] Two CUHK students are unwell after returning to Hong Kong
2020-01-06 21:34

Unknown viral pneumonia broke out in Wuhan, Hubei. It was reported that two more Chinese university students who had visited Wuhan felt unwell and went to Shatian Wells Hospital for medical treatment. The two were students of Harmony College and developed symptoms of respiratory infection.

Facebook's "Top Ten Harmony Infrastructure" posts tonight, stating that there are two mainland female students calling for an ambulance to the hospital on the 9th floor of the South Block of the Harmony Dormitory. They visited Wuhan in mid-December and returned on the 2nd and 3rd of this month, respectively. In Hong Kong, one of them had symptoms of upper respiratory tract, and the school security staff had called for an ambulance to take the two to hospital. The school contacted two students who were sent to the hospital. One of the female students did not have any symptoms of infection, while the other female student only had a cough and no fever and was waiting for a doctor's examination.

The Hospital Authority announced that from noon yesterday to noon today, public hospitals have received a total of six patients who had been to Wuhan in the past two weeks and had fever, respiratory infections or pneumonia symptoms, bringing the total number of cases to 21, including one living A 20-year-old female student from the Bethlehem dormitory of the CUHK United College.

A 20-year-old female mainland student went to Ren'an Hospital to try to seek medical treatment, and then left on her own. Laboratory results showed that she was positive for adenovirus and known coronavirus. She had no pneumonia and was still hospitalized.

[Shiloh]

Source: https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/...0010600511.htm

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

As at noon today (January 6), in the past 24 hours public hospitals had admitted six patients who have been to Wuhan in the past 14 days and presented with fever, respiratory infection or pneumonia symptoms, including a male patient and a female patient who had attended a general practitioner and a private hospital respectively.

	Hospital	Age	Gender	Condition
1.	United Christian Hospital	9	Male	Stable
2.	Queen Elizabeth Hospital	2	Male	Stable
3.	Queen Elizabeth Hospital	65	Male	Stable
4.	Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital	5	Female	Stable
5.	Prince of Wales Hospital	20	Female	Stable
6.	Tuen Mun Hospital	41	Female	Stable

The Hospital Authority (HA) has reported the cases and sent the specimens to the Department of Health (DH) for testing. The patients concerned are being treated under isolation. "The patients concerned had not visited wet markets in Wuhan before the onset of symptoms. All of them are in stable condition. The HA will keep monitoring the patients' conditions and provide appropriate treatment," the HA Chief Infection Control Officer, Dr Raymond Lai, said.

Including the above-mentioned cases, public hospitals have reported 21 patient cases to the DH since December 31, 2019. Seven of the patients have been discharged.



Ends/Monday, January 6, 2020
Issued at HKT 17:20

[alert]

Coronavirus but not pneumonia

This one is in Hong Kong, not mainland China. I trust their public health system.

This may be an awkward was of saying that the patient had infection with one of the four known human coronaviruses which are unrelated to SARS or MERS and typically cause only colds in healthy individuals, and not atypical pneumonia.

[Treyfish]

https://www.scmp.com/print/news/hong...hecks-visitors
Hong Kong urged to tighten health checks on visitors from mainland Chinese city of Wuhan and plug quarantine loophole amid mystery pneumonia outbreak

• Health officers should board trains and check passengers’ body temperatures before allowing them to enter Hong Kong, lawmaker says
• Hong Kong public hospitals admit six more patients who had been to Wuhan in the past 14 days and presented with symptoms

more....

[Pathfinder]

Translation Google

Director of Wuhan Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Viral pneumonia prevention and control is underway

2020-01-06 22:06:32 Source: China News Network Author: Anonymous Editor: Li Xu

【Abstract】 Aiming at the situation of viral pneumonia of unknown cause in our city, reporters from Changjiang Daily interviewed Li Gang, an expert on disease control and director of Wuhan Center for Disease Control and Prevention, on related issues of concern to the masses.
　　
Recently, in response to the unknown cause of viral pneumonia in our city, reporters from the Yangtze River Daily interviewed Li Gang, an expert on disease control and director of the Wuhan Center for Disease Control and Prevention, on relevant issues of concern to the masses.

　　
Question: Why does Wuhan find "unknown viral pneumonia" this year, and how is it defined as "unknown viral pneumonia"?

Answer: Winter and spring are the seasons when respiratory infections are high. Since the beginning of winter and spring, Wuhan medical and health institutions have further strengthened surveillance of respiratory infectious diseases. Recently, some medical institutions in Wuhan reported that many of the pneumonia cases received were associated with South China Seafood City. Further investigation showed that these patients had clinically fever and fatigue, some patients had cough and less sputum, and a small number of patients had difficulty breathing as the disease progressed; laboratory tests showed that the total number of white blood cells in the early stage of disease was normal or decreased, and lymphocyte counts Decreased, liver and muscle enzymes increased in some patients; chest radiographic examination showed diffuse ground-glass exudation in both lungs. The patient's above situation is suggestive of viral pneumonia. The detection of pathogens excludes respiratory pathogens such as influenza, avian influenza, adenovirus, infectious atypical pneumonia (SARS) and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), and further pathogen identification and cause tracing are needed. In order to facilitate the diagnosis and treatment of patients and the prevention and control of diseases, the health and health department calls it "viral pneumonia of unknown cause".

Question: According to the situation notified by the Wuhan Municipal Commission of Health, the number of cases has increased. Why did the number increase?

Answer: After receiving the situation that several medical institutions found that the pneumonia cases received by some medical institutions were related to South China Seafood City, Wuhan Municipal Health and Health Commission carried out relevant case searches and retrospective investigations in the medical institutions of the city, especially expanded unknown reasons. The scope of the search for viral pneumonia cases was organized, and experts were organized to diagnose and search the cases according to the diagnosis and treatment plan. Up to now, epidemiological investigations have shown that the expansion of the search scope, the retrospective investigation of existing cases, and the continued development of the investigation of included cases are the main reasons for the increase in the number of patients. It is expected that the number of cases will increase as related work progresses.

Q: What is the result of the current pathogen inspection?

Answer: As of now, respiratory pathogens such as influenza, bird flu, adenovirus, infectious atypical pneumonia (SARS), and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) have been excluded. Pathogen identification and cause tracing are still in progress, and no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission has been found.

Q: I haven't found any clear evidence of human-to-human transmission. Why should patients be treated in isolation and medically observed for close contacts?

A: As of now, preliminary investigation shows that no clear evidence of human-to-human transmission has been found. However, the patient's clinical manifestations are viral pneumonia, severe cases, and the etiology is not clear. The pathogen identification, etiology traceability and related epidemiological investigations are still in progress In further development, in view of this situation, it is very necessary to take preventive public health measures such as patient isolation treatment, close contact tracking and medical observation. I think this is a responsible attitude towards public health and safety. It is also a common practice in the international community. In the next step, with the further development of related work and the deeper understanding of the disease, the prevention and control measures will be adjusted accordingly.

Q: How to prevent viral pneumonia effectively in daily life?

A: Ordinary viral pneumonia can occur all year round. For this unknown cause of viral pneumonia, Wuhan has taken measures to close the South China seafood market, isolate patients for treatment, close contact tracing, and medical observation. Effectively reduce the risk of public infection. However, the winter and spring season is a season of high incidence of respiratory infectious diseases such as viral pneumonia. The public still needs to maintain good living and hygiene habits, wash their hands frequently, maintain indoor air circulation, properly open windows for ventilation, and inoculate influenza vaccine. In addition, avoiding closed, airless public places and crowded places, wearing masks when necessary are good preventive measures.

http://news.chinaxiaokang.com/shehuipindao/shehui/20200106/872623.html

[sharon sanders]

US CDC Issues a "Watch" on the Pneumonia of Unknown Cause in China - January 6, 2020

[Treyfish]

Two women suspected of pneumonia in Wuhan refuse to quarantine

2020-01-07 01:15

[NTD Beijing, January 07, 2020] The "Unknown Pneumonia" epidemic in Wuhan has continued to spread. A few days ago, two mainland women who had been to Wuhan were shocked to seek medical treatment in Hong Kong. They refused isolation and left. To date, one of the two female patients has not been identified, causing public concern. The Hong Kong Department of Health responded that because "Wuhan Unknown Pneumonia" was not included in the list of infectious diseases under Hong Kong's "Prevention and Control of Diseases Ordinance", the Department of Health had no right to compulsory isolate patients for inspection. The incident also sparked a debate between the Chief of Food and Health of Hong Kong and members of the Legislative Council.


Since the outbreak of "unknown pneumonia" in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, the number of suspected cases has been increasing, and the number of suspected cases found in Hong Kong has also increased.

According to the Hong Kong Hospital Authority's report, as of 12:00 noon on Monday (6th), a total of 21 suspected cases of Wuhan unknown pneumonia have been found in Hong Kong. Within 24 hours, 6 Hong Kong public hospitals received fever. , Patients with respiratory infections or pneumonia, and these patients have visited Wuhan in the past 14 days.

At the same time, a Hong Kong media kicked off, and two female patients from mainland China appeared to have doctors in Hong Kong on Sunday (5th) after they suspected of unidentified pneumonia in Wuhan. After initial diagnosis, they left because they did not want to be isolated for testing. The young woman of the two female patients has been identified as a junior college student from mainland China. She is currently accompanied by the ambulance staff to the public hospital for further examination with the boarder; however, the other one from the mainland China The young woman patient has so far failed to find her whereabouts. After the news was released, it aroused public fears about the spread of the epidemic.

According to a Hong Kong Position News report, the Hong Kong Department of Health has confirmed that Ruttonjee Hospital had a 45-year-old female patient in the morning of January 5. The patient reports that she developed fever and upper respiratory infection symptoms from January 4th. She had visited Wuhan in early January before her onset, but had not visited Wuhan's wet goods market or seafood market.

The hospital had arranged for patients to be placed in the isolation ward and arranged for relevant tests. X-ray photographs showed that the patient's lungs were shadowy and he was suspected of having pneumonia. He reported the case to the Centre for Health Protection. However, the patient was unwilling to undergo isolation testing and treatment, claiming to return to Shatian Didu Hotel to take care of her daughter, and was discharged from the hospital that night.

The woman reported to the hospital that the residence was the Shatin Royal Hotel, but at the request of the Department of Health, when the Royal Hotel Hotel Wine checked the relevant registration, it was found that there was no record of the female patient's check-in and booking, nor was it found. A resident with similar background information suspected that the woman had reported a fake address to the hospital.


The report cited government sources saying that as of now, the CHP is still tracking the whereabouts of the woman patient.

In addition, a female student from the Chinese University of Hong Kong from mainland China went to Hong Kong Ren'an Hospital for treatment on Sunday (January 5) due to discomfort. When the medical staff at the shunting station of the hospital registered personal information and asked about her symptoms, the woman reported that she had a fever. She had been to Wuhan a few days ago but had not been to a wet market or seafood market.

The nurse told the patient that she would be isolated or transferred to a public hospital after the consultation, and the woman left on her own. Later, Ren'an medical staff called the woman to understand the situation. The woman said that she was in Mong Kok and did not want to go to a public hospital in Hong Kong. She planned to return to Shenzhen for medical treatment.

In the evening of the same day, the girl returned to the Bethlehem dormitory of United College and was still having a fever. Later, the school arranged for the girl and the roommate to be accompanied by ambulance staff to a public hospital for further examination.https://www.ntdtv.com/b5/2020/01/06/a102746480.html

[alert]

https://www.axios.com/china-pneumonia-oubtreak-wuhan-e2ef8914-6bd7-46db-814d-1609d590ee07.html

[snip]

The cause of an outbreak of pneumonia in China that's sickened at least 59 people in the city of Wuhan remains a mystery, although Chinese officials say it is not the deadly SARS virus and doesn't appear to spread quickly between people.
Why it matters: There's no reason for Americans to be concerned at this point, but the source needs to be determined to halt its spread, says Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. Wuhan, which has a population of 19 million, is the capital of Hubei province, home to 58 million people.

What they're saying: Fauci tells Axios he expects China to complete and announce the results of deep sequencing of the germ's genome soon. "It's obviously a virus," Fauci says, as bacteria would have been found quickly in cultures. "My guess would be that it's a different kind of coronavirus."

[Treyfish]

Wuhan patient's lungs like frosted glass

1/7/2020
[Ming Pao News] Wuhan officials disclosed the detailed symptoms of patients with unknown pneumonia for the first time yesterday. Li Gang, director of the Wuhan Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said in an interview with internal media that a small number of patients had difficulty breathing, white blood cells and lymphocytes decreased; some human liver enzymes were elevated; diffuse frosty glass-like exudation shadows in the lungs (ie, lung flowers such as frosted glass) .

Zhuang Renxiang, deputy director of the Disease Control Department of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said that the incubation period of the coronavirus can be up to 14 days, and the new cases from 1 to 14 of this month may be infections before the seafood market is closed. If the infection continues after the 14th of this month, New cases may represent human-to-human transmission of the virus; if there are no new cases, it may be related to the source of animal infection.

"Yangtze River Daily" published an interview with Li Gang, director of Wuhan Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, saying that most of the patients with unknown pneumonia had fever, fatigue, some cough, little sputum, and a small number of patients with difficulty breathing. Laboratory examinations showed that the total number of white blood cells was normal or decreased in early stages of the onset of the disease, the number of lymphocytes was reduced, the liver enzyme and muscle enzyme indexes of some patients increased, and diffuse ground-glass exudation shadows appeared in both lungs. He expects the number of patients to continue to increase.

CUHK Professor of Respiratory Sciences Xu Shuchang said that viruses such as SARS, MERS, and avian influenza H5N1 and H7N9 can cause viral pneumonia, and patients' white blood cells, lymphocytes and platelets will decrease; if they are infected with bacteria, the number of white blood cells will increase. He also pointed out that the lung and liver were separated by a diaphragm, and if pneumonia would affect the inflammation of the liver, liver enzymes would rise.Regarding the diffuse ground-glass exudation shadows in both lungs, Xu Shuchang said that this represents lung flowers such as frosted glass, which is similar to SARS and MERS; it is currently difficult to determine what virus infection is through the above symptoms, and further analysis of viral genes is required.https://m.mingpao.com/pns/%e6%b8%af%...8e%bb%e7%92%83

[penguinsix]

Four travellers hospitalised in Thailand after visiting Wuhan

https://www.thephuketnews.com/four-travellers-reporting-feverish-symptoms-kept-in-quarantine-after-landing-from-wuhan-74280.php