495 Manila residents test positive for virus

MANILA, Philippines — Of the more than 8,800 rapid tests for the new coronavirus disease (COVID-19) conducted so far in Manila, 495 came back positive for the immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibody, which meant that those tested had antibodies fighting the virus.

Those who were positive, however, would still undergo a confirmatory swab test before the results could be considered conclusive.

As of Saturday night, the Manila Health Department had conducted 4,033 swab tests.

Many of those tested were from Sampaloc and Tondo 1 districts that had been placed on a 48-hour “hard lockdown” after registering the highest number of COVID-19 cases in the city.

In Tondo 1 district alone, which was placed on a hard lockdown from May 3 until May 5, at least 1,400 individuals underwent rapid testing. A total of 109 individuals tested positive for IgM.

So far, there have been 47 confirmed cases based on swab test results, bringing the number of positive cases in Tondo 1 to 174.

Manila Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso, however, asked residents not to panic, saying the higher numbers only meant that the city had found a more efficient way to find those possibly infected. INQ