2 People In NH Undergoing Testing For Coronavirus
BOSTON (CBS) – Two people in New Hampshire are undergoing testing for novel coronavirus. Health officials say the two people recently traveled to Wuhan City, China and developed respiratory symptoms.
"These people have more mild illness, but both sought healthcare for their illnesses and are recovering," the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services said. "They remain isolated until test results are available."
On Thursday, a student from White Mountain School in Bethlehem went to the emergency room at Littleton Regional Healthcare with mild flu-like symptoms. The student had traveled to Hunan and returned to the U.S. on January 6.
"Following the CDC guidelines for infection control, the patient has been placed in a negative pressure intensive care room for treatment to prevent cross-contamination to other areas of the hospital," the Littleton Regional Healthcare said in a statement.
Samples from the two individuals have been sent to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for testing.
At least 106 people have died in China from the new virus.
The CDC has confirmed five infections of novel coronavirus in the U.S. from four states, and is testing more than 100 additional people across country.
"The risk to our communities in New Hampshire is low, but we want to identify people who may be infected with this new coronavirus in order to prevent spread," said State Epidemiologist Dr. Benjamin Chan.
Symptoms are similar to a respiratory infection and include fever, runny nose and cough. It can progress quickly to a severe pneumonia-like illness with shortness of breath and trouble breathing.