Two new cases of COVID-19 have been reported by the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Monday (17 Feb), bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Singapore to 77.
The two cases include a one-year-old boy and a 35-year-old man.
Two new cases of COVID-19
Case 76 is a one-year-old Singaporean boy who was among the group evacuated from Wuhan on 9 Feb. He was without symptoms when he boarded the flight and was put under quarantine upon landing in Singapore. He is currently warded in an isolation room at the KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH), said MOH.
Case 77 is a 35-year-old man, a close contact of case 50. He was confirmed to have COVID-19 infection on 17 February morning and is currently warded in an isolation room at the National Centre for Infectious Diseases.
5 more cases recovered, discharged
Meanwhile, five more cases of COVID-19 infection have been reported to have recovered. Cases 14, 15, 31, 48 and 65 were allowed to leave hospital after making a full recovery. This brings the total number of discharged patients to 24.
Among the 24 cases that have fully recovered is the two-year-old Singaporean girl who was one of the 92 Singaporeans evacuated from Wuhan on 30 Jan. She tested positive of COVID-19 on 10 February, and was discharged on 14 February.
Coronavirus in babies
Despite the rapid increase of infection of COVID-19 in adults globally, very few children have tested positive in this recent outbreak, which is consistent with other coronavirus outbreaks in recent history including Sars and Mers.
In fact, cases in children "have been rare," said a report by Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) said the median age of patients for the current outbreak is between 49 and 56 years.
The World Journal of Clinical Paediatrics said the virus was rare in children, though it added that the "reason for low prevalence is not known." This was in comparison to the Mers outbreak in 2016.
Reducing the risks of COVID-19
here are a few things you can do to protect your family. Symptoms, as well as the method of spreading of coronavirus, seem to be the same as flu. Therefore, similar precautions are likely to work.
- Boost hand-washing habits. Use soap and water for 20 seconds and as often as possible.
- Avoid direct exposure to sneezing and coughing, and cover nose and mouth when sneezing or coughing.
- Forbid touching eyes, nose and mouth unnecessarily.
- Clean and disinfect household items and surfaces.
- Use alcohol-based hand sanitiser to help keep their hands clean.
- Visit the doctor when feeling unwell.