Taiwan’s youngest case of COVID-19 with severe symptoms — an eight-month-old infant — was confirmed by the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday, as it reported 40,263 new local infections.
The local case count was likely underreported due to fewer people having been tested on Sunday, which was Mother’s Day, and because Taiwan’s outbreak has not yet peaked, said Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center.
Of the new local cases, 52 had moderate symptoms and 19 had severe symptoms, Chen said.
Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞), deputy head of the CECC’s medical response division, said that 10 men and two women had died.
They were aged 50 to more than 90, and only one of them did not have underlying health issues.
Among the new cases with severe symptoms, the eight-month-old is a special case, the youngest person in Taiwan to have a severe COVID-19 infection, Lo said, adding that the girl tested positive at an emergency room after experiencing a high fever on Wednesday.
Photo courtesy of the Central Epidemic Command Center
On Thursday and Friday, the baby continued to have no appetite, a fever and localized muscle twitching, so she was taken to the emergency room again. She had low blood pressure and other serious symptoms, so the hospital admitted her to an intensive care unit, where she was treated with remdesivir and placed on a ventilator.
Far Eastern Memorial Hospital (FEMH) superintendent Chiu Kuan-ming (邱冠明) told the CECC daily briefing about his experiences in fighting on the COVID-19 front line.
If the seven-day case tally surpasses 500,000, healthcare capacity for patients without COVID-19 might be negatively affected, resulting in more deaths, he said.
“Don’t let your need for a PCR [polymerase chain reaction] test impede another person’s need for CPR [cardiopulmonary resuscitation]” he said, urging people with mild COVID-19 symptoms not to rush to emergency rooms or fill up hospital beds.
FEMH has increased its percentage of beds for COVID-19 patients to 26 percent, while demand at the emergency room in the past two weeks is eight times that of the past three years, Chiu said.
Hopefully, most cases can be referred to community testing stations and outpatient clinics, he added.
As a hospital responsible for taking care of people with COVID-19 quarantining at home, FEMH has provided care to more than 22,000 people, he said, adding that people must remember to leave a reachable cellphone number when getting a PCR test, as the hospital has not been able to reach about 20 percent of those tested.
Asked for the best place to quarantine after testing positive, Chiu said he always replies that “staying at home is the best choice.”
While 92 percent of people with COVID-19 can stay at home to recover, Chiu said he recommends that before people get sick, they set up a computer that would permit them to conduct telemedicine visits.
Hospitals have “green tunnels” to quickly admit people if their symptoms worsen, he said.
Chiu recommended that the government ease regulations, allowing telemedicine visits via telephone, instead of only via videoconferencing, so that people can consult with doctors and receive medication more efficiently.
Taiwan yesterday also reported 41 imported cases.
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