Karnataka issues guidelines to deal with coronavirus threat amid global outbreak

Karnataka's Directorate of Health and Family Welfare Services on Thursday issued guidelines for testing, isolation, hospital admission and discharge in view of outbreak of vel Coronavirus (nCoV) in Wuhan city of China, a virus that has infected nearly 20,000 globally and has killed more than 500 in China.

According to guidelines, sample of any passenger, wher symptomatic or asymptomatic, with a history of travel to or residence in Wuhan city of China in last 14 days, has to be collected and tested. And sample of any health personnel, who develops symptoms of virus after being associated with infected persons, has to be collected.

circular furr says that clinical sample of any suspect/probable case of nCoV will be sent to laboratory confirmation and case will be kept in isolation. If tested positive, treatment has to be provided as per existing guidelines.

All 645 evacuated from Wuhan test negative

Union Health Ministry on Thursday said all 645 people evacuated from China's Wuhan city, who were kept in isolation at Army Base and ITBP camps, tested negative for coronavirus. It added that as of February 6, 1,38,750 passengers from 1,265 flights had been screened for vel coronavirus but new case was detected.

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India has so far reported three confirmed cases of Coronavirus from Kerala. Three medical students studying at Wuhan University who returned to India recently tested positive for virus. Besides, 510 samples were tested by ICMR network laboratories, of which all had tested negative except for three already reported positive cases. three cases are clinically stable, ministry said in a statement.

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Death toll in China crosses 550

coronavirus death toll in mainland China jumped by 73 to 563 on Thursday, its third consecutive record daily rise. Experts have intensified efforts to find a vaccine for a disease that has shut down Chinese cities and factories and could dam world's second-largest ecomy. Hubei province, epicentre of epidemic, reported 70 new deaths on Wednesday and 2,987 new confirmed cases - more than 80 per cent of total, reported by Chinese authorities.

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(with ANI inputs)