Two returnees from Wuhan have been placed in hospital isolation for thorough examination as health officials warn people of the need to protect themselves from coronavirus infection, even though the number of local cases has stabilised.
Dr Suwannachai Wattanayingcharoenchai, director-general of the Disease Control Department, said on Friday that one Thai returnee from Wuhan had a cold. That person and a roommate were sent to local hospitals for a more thorough examination.
They were among the 134 evacuees earlier placed in 14-day quarantine at Sattahip naval base in Chon Buri province.
Four other returnees from Wuhan were treated for fever at Queen Sirikit Hospital in Chon Buri after a total of 138 Thais returned from the central Chinese city on Tuesday night. The four had recovered and would be sent to Sattahip naval base to start their 14-day quarantine for signs of the coronavirus if a repeat-test proves negative for 2019-nCoV infection, Dr Suwannachai said.
He confirmed a report that crew members of a Thai Airways flight from Phuket to Suvarnabhumi airport had been quarantined because the flight was suspected of carrying a coronavirus patient. The quarantine had ended and the crew had resumed work, Dr Suwannachai said.
The Public Health Ministry reported on Friday that the number of confirmed cases of infection with the new virus in Thailand was steady at 25, and 16 of them remained at hospitals. Most of the hospitalised people were recovering. The condition of a male coach driver who also had tuberculosis was stable.
The number of patients being monitored for infection stood at 615, with 390 of them still in hospitals.
Dr Tanarak Plipat, deputy director-general of the Disease Control Department, said that although the number of confirmed cases locally seemed to have stabilised, people should still be serious about protecting themselves from infection. There were still infected people out there showing no symptoms who could transmit the disease.
He recommended the use of face masks and frequent hand washing.
Dr Tanarak said the eipdemic in China was still in its early stage and could peak in about six months, based on the outbreak cycle of avian influenza a decade ago.
