Health ministry confirms no case of coronavirus in Kenya

A Kenyan student who arrived from China with flu-like symptom does not have the deadly coronavirus, the health ministry announced yesterday. The patient however remains in isolation at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) as a precautionary measure.

Officials said the 22 year-old student had been in Wuhan before January 20,2019 but not contracted the deadly disease.

“On examination, the suspected case was found to be in stable condition with all vital signs with normal ranges. Following admission at the KNH, appropriate specimens have been collected for investigation at the National Influenza Centre. Following admission at the KNH, appropriate specimens have been collected for investigation at the National Influenza Centre,” said Ministry of Health Cabinet Secretary, Cicily Kariuki.

“Information available indicates that he left Wuhan City on January 20 to Zhangjiajie City. He left for Nairobi through Guangzhou, China and Bangkok, Thailand on 27th January 2020 and arrived at JKIA this morning at 0615 hours. The suspected case remains in the isolation facility at KNH while investigations and laboratory tests are undertaken,” she said.

The country remains at risk given the number of passengers who jet into the country every day. Kenya Airways operates two daily non-stop flights between the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), Nairobi and Guangzhou.

All passengers flying in from China are now required to fill in a travelers health surveillance form (a manifest) which the ministry says will be used to track people who have been in the Asian country recently.

CS says the government position remains that citizens refrain from making any unnecessary travels to China joining the long list of countries, including the US, that have warned their citizens from travelling to the worst-hit region. Hubei province, which includes Wuhan.

The “novel” coronavirus has so far been confirmed in 15 countries including the United States, France, Japan, South Korea, Canada and Malaysia. The viral infection has also claimed over 100 lives but no casualties have been reported outside China. About 4,583 cases had been confirmed, the vast majority from mainland China, by the time of going to press.

The Chinese government has so far restricted travel to Hubei province as the place remain on lock-down as the country battles to contain coronavirus now dubbed 2019-nCoV.