Coronavirus: Fliers from China to city to be monitored for a while

Bengaluru: Although no suspected cases of the novel Coronavirus (nCoV) has been reported in India so far, the Karnataka health department, as a precautionary measure, has put seven passengers who arrived from mainland China to Bengaluru under observation.

“We have quarantined seven passengers who travelled from China and arrived at the Kempegowda International Airport in the last few days.

Of them, four Chinese nationals have been under observation in hotels and three local residents are quarantined in their homes,” said Dr Prakash Kumar BG, joint director, monitoring communicable diseases in the state.

Health department officials are visiting these passengers on a daily basis to check if they develop any symptoms. As per the standard operating procedure, isolated passengers, although asymptomatic, will be kept under observation for three weeks. Mandatory thermal screening of all passengers who had travelled from Chinese cities was done at Bengaluru airport in the past five days.

Airport officials said they have set up a help desk at the international arrival lounge. In the backdrop of 26 deaths reported in China’s Wuhan city due to the outbreak of Coronavirus, the health department on Thursday issued a public advisory with a brief description on the spread of the disease, symptoms and precautionary measures to be taken.

According to health officials, the initial symptoms of the disease include cold and fever, headache, bodyache, which will gradually lead to pneumonia and severe respiratory issues.

Health officials said that they will continue to quarantine passengers who arrive from mainland China over the next few days and keep them under observation. The department has also identified a 10-bed isolation ward in Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Health Science in Bengaluru to facilitate isolation of patients if suspected cases come to light.

“There was a high-level meeting of health officials on Thursday to monitor the preparedness for Coronavirus cases. We have checked the availability of logistics including medicines. One 108 ambulance has been deployed exclusively to transport patients from the airport to the quarantine ward of the hospital in case a need arises,” Kumar said.

The department has already held an orientation programme for district surveillance officers about the spread of the virus and treatment.