A 22-year-old patient has been put in isolation at the Coast General Hospital following fears she may have contracted the deadly coronavirus disease.
The student arrived in Nairobi from China about a week ago, according to Mombasa County’s Health Chief Officer, Dr Khadija Shikely.
The patient, who has been identified as Shukri Jamal Mahmood, studies medicine at the Southern Medical University in Guangzhou, China.
“She is currently isolated in a private room at Rehemtullah at Coast General. Blood samples sent to MOH [Ministry of Health], Nairobi for analysis,” said Dr. Shikely.
The county official said the student started feeling unwell while in China with complaints of chest pain and breathing difficulties.
According to the statement issued by the county, the student arrived on January 30, 2020, through Nairobi at about 6 am.
The World Health Organisation on Friday, January 31, declared the coronavirus a global emergency, with a special focus on countries that have no health capacities to deal with the outbreak.
So far, the virus has killed at least 304 people in China following the outbreak in the central city of Wuhan. After the outbreak, the Chinese government put in lockdown 20 cities with 56 million people effectively quarantined.
Over 14,000 cases have been reported worldwide, most of them in China and especially in Wuhan and nearby cities in Hubei Province.
A man from Wuhan also died in the Philippines, the first country to report a fatality from the virus outside of mainland China.
Here is what you need to know:
According to WHO, coronaviruses are a family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as SARS and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).
These viruses were originally transmitted between animals and people. SARS, for instance, was believed to have been transmitted from civet cats to humans while MERS travelled from a type of camel to humans.
According to the WHO, signs of infection include fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.
In more severe cases, it can lead to pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome, kidney failure and even death.
The incubation period of the coronavirus remains unknown. Some sources say it could be between 10 and 14 days.
