MANILA, Philippines — The Manila Doctors Hospital on Thursday confirmed that two patients who tested positive for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) have been admitted to the institution.
One of them was the 67-year-old female Filipino, who succumbed to the disease.
In a statement, the hospital said that the female was first admitted to their institution on March 5.
“Based on her initial symptoms, she was put in isolation pending results from a specimen sent to the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM),” the statement read.
“She succumbed to the disease prior to the release of the results from RITM on March 11, 2020.”
Meanwhile, a second confirmed case was admitted last March 8, and is currently in isolation and in stable condition.
“He will be transferred to a referral facility as per the request of the family members,” the Manila Doctors Hospital said.
The hospital added that the medical staff and hospital personnel who were exposed to the patients were placed under quarantine, and that contact tracing was done.
The country’s record of COVID-19 cases soared to 49 on Wednesday, the Department of Health (DOH) said.
The COVID-19 is caused by a novel coronavirus that first broke out in Wuhan City of China.
That novel coronavirus was later named SARS-CoV-2 by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses.
This virus causes mild symptoms such as fever and cough for most people. It may also lead to severe illnesses such as pneumonia to others, especially to older adults and to people who have pre-existing health problems.
Coronavirus is a family of viruses, which surfaces have a crown-like appearance. Such viruses are named for their spikes on their surfaces.