Possible coronavirus case at a Tennessee university as death toll rises in China
Officials at Tennessee Tech University warn that a student is being kept in isolation as they await test results for coronavirus, the virus that has killed at least 26 people in China and sickened hundreds more.
The school said a student had “very mild symptoms” but because of his travel history they are testing him for the highly contagious virus.
“Health providers quickly recognized that the patient met the criteria for coronavirus testing, but nothing has been confirmed. The individual is being kept isolated while precautionary testing is being conducted,” the school said in a statement.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a new travel warning for China Thursday, advising people to avoid any nonessential travel to Wuhan, the center of the outbreak. Chinese officials have already shut down all transport into and out of Wuhan, including airports, trains and buses, the CDC said.
The CDC reported the first confirmed case of the virus in the United States on Jan. 21.
Public health officials say person-to-person transmission of the virus may be possible.
“At this time, it’s unclear how easily or sustainably this virus is spreading between people,” the CDC said.
Symptoms of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) are “mild to severe respiratory illness” with fever, cough and shortness of breath, according to the CDC.
The virus has infected hundreds of people so far and killed at least 26 people in China, according to The New York Times.
This story was originally published January 24, 2020 at 10:26 AM with the headline "Possible coronavirus case at a Tennessee university as death toll rises in China."
