Brazil Confirms First Case of New Coronavirus in 61-Year-Old Patient in São Paulo

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazil confirmed on Tuesday night, February 25th, the first positive case for the new coronavirus, according to Estado newspaper. The Ministry of Health said the case concerns a 61-year-old man, living in São Paulo, with a history of traveling alone to Italy, in the northern region of Lombardy, from February 9th to 21st. The patient is well, according to the authorities, showing mild symptoms of the disease and will be in home isolation.

The case was reported by the Albert Einstein Israeli Hospital as a suspected coronavirus case on Tuesday afternoon. With preliminary results performed by the health facility and according to the National Contingency Plan, the hospital sent the sample to the national reference laboratory, Adolfo Lutz Institute, for further testing, which has already been performed. Sources heard by Estado newspaper, however, advanced the positive diagnosis.

The Ministry of Health will officially release the final report of the investigation at 11 AM on Wednesday, February 26th. The Minister, Luiz Henrique Mandetta, and the Secretary of Health of São Paulo, José Henrique Germann Ferreira, will both speak at a press conference in Brasília to discuss the case and announce the steps to be taken.

The outbreak, which began in China in December, has already reported approximately 80,000 cases worldwide and over 2,600 deaths. Since the end of the week, the surge in cases in Italy has raised the global alert about the disease.

Despite the confirmation of the positive result, members of the government have already advanced to Estado that nothing will change in the strategy already in place to contain the advance of the disease since the country has already anticipated the decree of a state of emergency in public health. In this scenario, it may even contract needed services with no public bids.

The State and City Health Departments are conducting an identification study of people who have come in contact with the patient in the residence, hospital and on the flight, with the help of the National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA) and the airline company.

In total, São Paulo is investigating three more suspected cases, all adults: two from the capital and one from Bauru. All are travelers who came from one of the countries included in the Ministry’s watch list, which comprises Australia, China, South Korea, North Korea, Cambodia, Philippines, Japan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand, Germany, France, Iran, and the Arab Emirates. On Tuesday, the Brazilian Embassy in Rome emphasized that “the Brazilian government has not imposed restrictions on flights from Italy”.

Government rushes to buy masks, gloves, and immunoglobin

According to Estado, the government is in the final stage of purchasing equipment, such as masks and gloves. The hiring of a thousand beds in hospitals, announced in January, is still under consideration. The government is rushing to secure the purchase of immunoglobulin, used in patients with low immunity to mitigate the effects of infections.

Source: O Estado de S. Paulo