The Novel Coronavirus Response and Coordination Centre announced in a statement last night that Macau confirmed its 50th COVID-19 case yesterday, a 31-year-old man who was among the 10 passengers who flew on a chartered flight from Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu to Macau last month.
According to an announcement by the centre last month, all 10 passengers tested negative for COVID-19 in a nucleic acid test (NAT) upon their arrival at the local airport on April 25.
The announcement went on to say that five out of the 10 passengers tested positive for the novel coronavirus in their antibody tests, also known as serology tests, upon their arrival at the local airport.
According to last month’s announcement, the other five among the 10 passengers tested negative for the novel coronavirus in their antibody tests upon their arrival at the local airport.
According to last night’s statement, the 31-year-old man tested negative for COVID-19 in his nucleic acid test but positive for the virus in his antibody test upon his arrival at the local airport on April 25. The statement did not mention’s the man’s nationality.
According to last night’s statement, the Health Bureau (SSM) concluded last month that the 31-year-old man had previously been infected with the novel coronavirus and had recovered elsewhere.
Last night’s statement said that the Health Bureau transferred the man to its Public Health Clinical Centre in Coloane for medical observation last month after considering that he would possibly test positive for the virus in a nucleic acid test again.
According to last night’s statement, the man tested negative for COVID-19 in three more nucleic acid tests which were taken on April 28, May 2 and May 9. However, the man “weakly” tested positive for the virus in a follow-up nucleic acid test yesterday, the statement said.
The Health Bureau has said previously the fact that some COVID-19 patients discharged from hospital or asymptomatic carriers of the novel coronavirus have later tested positive for the virus again in a nucleic acid test is “merely a phenomenon”, which means that they have not had a relapse, i.e. suffering COVID-19 symptoms again.
Consequently, last night’s statement underlined, the Nepali’s case as “an asymptomatic carrier of the novel coronavirus who later tested positive for the virus again”.
The statement said that consequently the Health Bureau has decided to classify the 31-year-old man as a COVID-19 case for Macau, considering that he had previously not been confirmed as a COVID-19 patient elsewhere, bringing Macau’s total number of COVID-19 cases to 50.
Macau confirmed its first COVID-19 case on January 22 last year. No novel coronavirus death has been recorded in Macau.
Observers have described Macau as an “oasis” in the world’s COVID-19 “desert”.
People wearing PPE suits use sanitisers at a crematorium where the last rites are performed of COVID-19 patients in Kathmandu on Friday. – AFP
