Philippines first confirmed nCoV case getting better, says DOH

The 38-year-old Chinese woman who became the Philippines' first confirmed case of novel coronavirus is getting better, the Department of Health (DOH) said on Wednesday.

Health Undersecretary Eric Domingo, however, said she remained nCoV positive.

"'Yung first case natin wala na talaga siyang sakit. No fever, no cough, no colds. However, the latest test that was done itong last 48 hours was still positive," Domingo said at a press conference in Manila.

"Kumakaunti na 'yung virus pero positive parin so hindi pa rin natin siya pinapauwi. [She's] still admitted," he added.

The second confirmed case—the woman's partner—died on Saturday and is set to be cremated in the country.

The 44-year-old Chinese man was the first fatality outside China, where close to 500 have already died due to the novel coronavirus.

Meanwhile, the third confirmed case in the country is a 60-year-old Chinese woman who was also from China's Wuhan City.

Her samples on January 24, which were initially tested both by a local and an Australian laboratory, showed that she was negative for the virus.

She was discharged and was able to take a flight out to China on January 31.

However, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) notified the DOH later on that samples taken earlier from her on January 23 tested positive for novel coronavirus in a subsequent examination.

The clinical explanation for the two different results was that the patient was actually starting to recover when the samples were taken, Domingo said.

According to China's National Health Commission, 892 patients out of the over 24,000 confirmed cases in China had been cured and discharged from hospitals.

It has recorded 490 deaths. 

There is still no known cure for the new strain of coronavirus. The treatment of infected patients is purely supportive, according to the DOH. —NB, GMA News