SINGAPORE: A fifth case of the Wuhan virus has been confirmed in Singapore, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said in a statement on Monday night (Jan 27).
The confirmed case is a 56 year-old female Chinese national from Wuhan who arrived in Singapore with her family on Jan 18, the authority said on Monday.
“She is currently warded in an isolation room at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) and her condition is stable,” MOH said.
READ: Wuhan virus death toll spikes to 81, more than 2,700 cases confirmed in China
The woman was “asymptomatic” during her flight to Singapore, MOH said, adding that she later developed symptoms on Jan 24 and was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital on Jan 26.
She was then classified as a suspect case and immediately isolated at NCID. “Subsequent test results confirmed Wuhan coronavirus infection on Jan 27,” said MOH.
The ministry added that she has no known links to the other confirmed imported cases.
READ: Wuhan virus in Singapore: What we know about the confirmed cases
Before she was admitted to the hospital, the 56-year-old stayed with her family at their home at Ceylon Road, said MOH.
Since the onset of symptoms, she stayed at home until she was taken to the hospital two days later.
READ: Wuhan virus: Increased border checks, leave of absence among new counter-measures
MOH said as of Monday at noon, 62 of the suspect cases tested negative for the Wuhan coronavirus, and four tested positive. The fifth case involving the 56 year-old female was confirmed at 2pm.
Test results for the remaining 57 cases are pending, the health authority said.
MOH also identified 115 close contacts from the first four confirmed cases as of Monday at noon. Of the 86 who are still in Singapore, 75 have been contacted and are being quarantined or isolated.
The authority added efforts are ongoing to contact the remaining 11 close contacts.
“Contact tracing for the confirmed cases is ongoing. Once identified, MOH will closely monitor all close contacts,” MOH explained.
“As a precautionary measure, they will be quarantined for 14 days from their last exposure to the patient.
“In addition, all other identified contacts who have a low risk of being infected will be under active surveillance, and will be contacted daily to monitor their health status.”
READ: WHO says global risk of Wuhan virus is ‘high’
The deadly virus has killed 81 people in China so far, with more than 2,700 confirmed cases.
Earlier on Monday, a recently formed multi-ministry task force announced Singapore will have a new set of stringent measures in an effort to contain the deadly coronavirus that originated from Wuhan. These measures include enhanced temperature screening and compulsory leave of absence for students and teachers returning from China.
Singapore’s first confirmed case was a 66-year-old Wuhan man who stayed at Shangri-La’s Rasa Sentosa Resort and Spa.
This was followed by the confirmed cases of the man’s 37-year-old son and a 53-year-old woman from Wuhan.
On Jan 26, MOH announced the fourth confirmed case of the Wuhan virus – a 36-year-old Chinese man from Wuhan who had stayed at Village Hotel Sentosa.
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