Foreign MERS patient cleared to leave Philippines
Print Edition
A 36-year-old foreigner who tested positive for MERS after arriving in the Philippines from the Middle East is now free of the virus and will leave the hospital this weekend, officials said yesterday.
Health spokesman Lyndon Lee Suy said the man’s contact, a Filipino woman, is also well but will stay in hospital until she completes a 14-day quarantine period on July 18.
Passengers seated near the foreigner on his flight were traced and none manifested any symptoms, Lee Suy said.
They are among 112 contacts of the foreigner who are being monitored until they complete the 14-day period.
Lee Suy said laboratory tests conducted on the foreigner within 48 hours were negative for the virus, leading authorities to conclude that he “is free of the virus and would not be able to infect others as well.”
Officials have not disclosed the nationality of the patient, who arrived in the Philippines on June 19 from Saudi Arabia.
The patient developed a fever and cough on June 30, sought medical care on July 2, tested positive for the MERS virus on July 4 and was transferred to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, officials said.
Meanwhile, South Korea said yesterday that its death toll from MERS had risen to 36.
The latest fatality died while being treated at a Seoul hospital, Yonhap news agency said, citing the health ministry.
The country has confirmed 186 infections, while more than 560 people remain in quarantine, according to the World Health Organization.
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