Coronavirus' Change of Course Causing a Faster Spread: Govt
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5 March 2020 11:58 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The national coronavirus mitigation spokesman Achmad Yurianto said that the development of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) underwent a change of course causing it to spread faster despite the stringent preventive measures by international communities.
“This is caused by the change in the disease’s track record. For one, the 14-day incubation duration is not enough,” said the directorate-general of disease prevention and control secretary on Wednesday.
One case he highlights is the late-detection of a coronavirus suspect who was released from observation after completing the 14-day incubation period due to testing negative for the virus. However, the patient tested positive for COVID-19 on the 20th day.
He did not just highlight the extended incubation period, Achmad Yurianto also noted the many positive COVID-19 cases that initially did not show or lacked the symptoms of a coronavirus suspect.
“Maybe the fever was not that high, this can be due to consuming medications that reduced the fever. This can get them past any border gate,” said Achmad Yurianto.
He implied that the aforementioned case can explain why the Japanese national who infected two Indonesians with the COVID-19 was able to enter the country from Jakarta.
On Monday, President Jokowi announced Indonesia’s first coronavirus cases who are tested positive for the disease after making contact with a Japanese national in a dance event. The Japanese national was tested positive in Malaysia after his visit to Indonesia.
ANTARA
