KOLLAM: A 21-year-old from Kollam is suspected to have been infected with Covid XE, the mutant variant of the novel coronavirus, trigerring worries. A senior health official in Kollam told TNIE that the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology had confirmed the variant in the samples of the youth collected a month ago, making it the first such case in Kerala. However, the state health department has not yet issued an official statement. The youth has recovered,
“No instance of secondary infection have been reported so far. The youth had no travel history nor was he in contact with any Covid patient,” said the district health official. The health department has increased surveillance in the district to contain a possible spread.
Month-old case, youth has recovered: Health official
It has directed government hospitals to collect records of patients complaining of fever, cold and breathing trouble. The official said DNA samples of people will be sent for detailed analysis from areas reporting a higher number of cases. “It’s a one-month-old case and the patient has recovered. We have collected and tested samples of all his contacts and have found no secondary cases,” said the official.
While testing of people returning from abroad has been intensified and they have been asked to stay in quarantine, no quarantine has been imposed on those coming from other states. “In case any international traveller exhibiting Covid symptoms tests positive, their sample is directly sent for genome sequencing. If any of them tests positive, all their contacts are being tested,” said the official.
The health officer said all PHCs and CHCs in the districts have been directed to report patients complaining of symptoms of influenza and acute respiratory infection. “If the number of such patients is high we are collecting samples at random for Covid tests,” said the official.
Kollam on Thursday reported nine Covid cases out of 1,000 samples tested. “All precautionary measures have been taken in the district in case of any untoward incident,” said the officer. The state has been reporting around 200 Covid cases since the beginning of April. Neither Health Minister Veena George nor Health Secretary Rajan Khobragade did respond to calls by TNIE.