Eight-month-old baby suspected to have coronavirus dies in Dagupan

PANGASINAN, Philippines –  An eight-month-old baby who was considered a suspect case of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) passed away on Wednesday, April 15, in Dagupan City.

The city’s Public Information Office (PIO) said that the infant was admitted to a private hospital on Tuesday, April 14. She had cough, seizures, and fever.

“She died at about 7:10 a.m. today (Wednesday). A throat swab taken from her had been sent to a hospital accredited by the DOH (Department of Health) to do SARS-CoV2 test using RT-PCR,” the PIO said.

Meanwhile, a 29-year-old woman, a nurse from Barangay Mayombo, is Dagupan City’s 7^th confirmed COVID-19 case.

She is the 5^th medical frontliner in the city to have contracted the coronavirus. (READ: Braving a pandemic: Frontliners battle fear to confront the novel coronavirus)

According to Dr. Ophelia Rivera, the nurse was exposed to a COVID-19 case at the Region 1 Medical Center, where some of Pangasinan’s confirmed cases are confined.

“She had a swab test on April 12 but the result was only released today, April 15, by the Baguio General Hospital”, the PIO report said.

The nurse went into self-quarantine on March 28, and was later admitted to R1MC on Wednesday, the PIO added.

As of  7pm Wednesday, the Dagupan PIO said on its Facebook page that there are 36 coronavirus disease cases in Pangasinan, 14 of whom are confined in hospitals, 13 have recovered and 9 have died.

Dagupan has also recorded a total of two recoveries – a 50-year-old female from Barangay Lucao and a 37-year-old male from Barangay Bonuan Gueset.

Dagupan City Mayor Marc Brian Lim has donated rapid antibody testing kits to neighboring towns on Tuesday namely: Calasiao; Mangaldan; Binmaley; San Fabian; and Lingayen.

As of Wednesday, official DOH figures showed the number of coronavirus cases in the country has soared to nearly 5,500, but saw more recoveries than deaths. – Rappler.com