[ad_1]
The first community-transmitted Covid-19 case in Ireland had 780 close or casual contacts, it can be revealed.
The case was detected at Cork University Hospital (CUH) in March of this year.
It has since been revealed that the patient in question had presented symptoms in CUH four days before any Covid-19 case was confirmed in Ireland.
Following the confirmation of these first imported cases, the hospital staff decided to test the patient in question, outside of the national guidelines in force at the time, and the test came back positive.
Public health sources said that because the case was undiagnosed for a time, a total of 780 contacts were identified and traced, but the original source of transmission has yet to be detected.
Those 780 close or casual contacts consisted of household, family and social contacts, as well as healthcare workers and patient contacts, as the patient had spent time in the emergency department prior to diagnosis.
Contacts were also detected in the patients’ GP clinic, where the patient originally had symptoms.
A public health source explained that all contacts were contacted.
“Most were advised as casual contacts, it is not necessary to restrict movements, but to be alert and watch out for any symptoms related to Covid-19 for 14 days from the date of exposure.
“Domestic contacts are by definition close contacts and some hospital contacts, both health workers and patients, were also close contacts,” they explained.
A report on the case released by CUH earlier this year explained that a male patient presented at CUH on February 25, four days before the first reported Covid-19 case in Ireland.
The patient developed a cough and headache and required ventilation, but had no history of “recent travel abroad or unusual exposures,” according to the report.
The decision was made to evaluate the patient for Covid-19, outside of the national guidelines in force at that time.
However, the report notes that the test resulted in a “critically important diagnosis” as it came back positive.
The report also revealed that the tracking is ongoing but that so far, the source of transmission, in this case, has yet to be detected.
“This had implications for management, prognosis and family contact tracing,” the report said.
“So far there have been a number of transmission cases from this index case, including from healthcare personnel and patient contacts,” the report adds.
This case had “far-reaching implications” for the broader epidemiology of Covid-19 in Ireland, providing evidence of community transmission despite only six nationally imported cases being reported at the time of diagnosis, the report explains. .
The case also led to immediate changes to the Covid-19 testing algorithm and led to more cases of community transmission being detected.
The report claims that the case and its response informed the national response to Covid-19, “which has suppressed the curve and saved countless lives nationwide.”
This case also highlights the importance of clinical judgment in deciding appropriate clinical investigation and management, he adds.
“At an unprecedented time in the history of modern medicine, where evidence-based guidelines and high-quality clinical trials are lacking, individual clinical insight and reasoned decision-making are more important than ever,” the report concludes.
CUH and HSE were contacted for comment.
[ad_2]