Coronavirus, confirmed in Romania
A fist case of coronavirus was confirmed in Romania on Wednesday night.
Roxana Vasile, 27.02.2020, 14:34
It was only a matter of days, after earlier this week an Italian citizen infected with coronavirus was reported to have travelled to Romania, until a first case of infection in Romania was confirmed. This happened on Wednesday night, when authorities announced that a young man from the county of Gorj, who came into contact with the Italian who travelled to southern Romania between February 18 and 22, tested positive to the virus. The patient was immediately transferred to the Matei Bals Hospital of Infectious Diseases in Bucharest.
His condition is good, according to the Romanian Health Minister Victor Costache: “The patient’s condition is good, he does not have symptoms and we should not be alarmed. Another 33 samples taken from people in the same area are being tested and we will announce the results as soon as we have them.”
In his turn, head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Raed Arafat, said that all seven members of the patient’s family are under quarantine at home: “According to the information that we have at the moment, they all tested negative, but, given the fact that the man who tested positive lived in that home and was in direct contact with his family members, all seven people in the house are now under quarantine and and are guarded. They are provided with everything they need, but they are not allowed to leave the house.”
At the same time, an epidemiological investigation is conducted in the locality in Gorj county where the first infection was confirmed, in order to identify all people who were in contact with the Italian who travelled to the area and with the Romanian who was infected afterwards. All people who have been tested for the virus and who have not received the results yet are also isolated at home. Moreover, measures to prevent the virus from spreading have been taken, such as quarantine measures, while schools and kindergartens were shot down for disinfection.
Specialists say that in spite of a first case of infection being confirmed, there is no reason for panic. Physician Adrian Marinescu, with the Matei Bals Institute of Infectious Diseases in Bucharest, explains: “Most cases are non-symptomatic, they are easy to medium, and not severe cases. Severe cases account for 5% of the total cases across the world and the mortality rate stands at 2% to 3% at the most. Prevention measures taken anywhere in the world, anywhere in Europe, are also taken in Romania. It was absolutely clear, given the European context and the connections between Romania in Italy, that we would also have confirmed cases. What matters is for these to be isolated cases, as it is the case everywhere, with the exception of China and Italy.”
After Wednesday’s meeting of the Supreme Defence Council, the conclusion was the same: Romanians should take their information from authorized sources and should not panic.
(Translated by Elena Enache)
