Images combined from a 3D medical animation, depicting the shape of coronavirus as well as the cross-sectional view | Courtesy of Scientific AnimationsBy Juan Perfetti – Editor.
A male student at the Dorchester campus of the University of Massachusetts (Umass Boston) is the first case of coronavirus confirmed in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
The information was confirmed by the Interim Chancellor of Umass Boston, Katherine S. Newman, in a statement released today (February 1st, 2020) around 2:45 PM.
“I want to let you know that a member of the UMass Boston community who recently returned from Wuhan, China has tested positive for the novel coronavirus,” Newman said while assuring that the institution is “working closely” with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH) and the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) to ensure “all guidelines and protocols are diligently followed.”
The MDPH announced earlier today the confirmation of the first case of 2019 Novel Coronavirus in Massachusetts, but they didn’t specify any personal details more than it was a “man returning from Wuhan, China who is in his 20s and lives in Boston.” The MDPH and the BPHC were notified by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) of the positive test results late Friday evening (January 31st, 2020).
The agency explained that the student “sought medical care soon after his return to Massachusetts,” and “has been isolated since that time and will continue to remain isolated until cleared by public health officials.”
A few close contacts of the infected person “have been identified and are being monitored for any sign of symptoms,” according to the agency.
The Wuhan coronavirus has resulted in thousands of confirmed human infections in more than 20 nations, with more than 99 percent of cases in China. Eight cases have been confirmed in the United States of America until today: three in California, two in Illinois and one individual each in Massachusetts, Washington State, and Arizona.
Alex Azar, Secretary of the US Health and Human Services, declared novel coronavirus a public health emergency on Friday, January 31st, 2020, and ordered any American citizens returning from the center of the outbreak in China to be quarantined for two weeks as a precaution.
The World Health Organization declared on Thursday, January 30th, 2020, that the coronavirus outbreak is a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
According to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the risk to the public remains low in the Commonwealth.
