Apart from this patient, four Chinese nationals and two Indian nationals, who had arrived in Bengaluru from Beijing and Wuhan, have also been kept in isolation by the health department. (File Photo) Apart from this patient, four Chinese nationals and two Indian nationals, who had arrived in Bengaluru from Beijing and Wuhan, have also been kept in isolation by the health department. (File Photo)

A middle-aged man, who was admitted in a Bengaluru hospital for showing symptoms of cold and cough after his recent return from China’s Wuhan city, has been tested negative for the deadly coronavirus, which has so far claimed the lives of 80 people.

“The patient is kept under observation in an isolation ward for now and will be discharged soon. The samples of his throat swab, which were sent to the National Institute of Virology, Pune, tested negative,” said Dr Prakash, Joint Director, Communicable Diseases, Karnataka Department of Health and Family Welfare.

The man was admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases after he showed some symptoms.

Aside from this patient, four Chinese nationals and two Indian nationals, who had arrived in Bengaluru from Beijing and Wuhan, have also been kept in isolation by the health department.

“Chinese nationals and Indian citizens who have come to Bengaluru after a trip from China have been kept quarantined in their hotels and homes respectively, even though they show no symptoms. This will go on for the next 28 days. There is no reason for the public to panic, as we are taking necessary precautions,’ Dr Prakash added.

The outbreak of the deadly virus started in Wuhan in mid-December last year and has claimed 80 lives, reported news agency AP. Most of these deaths have occurred in mainland China, but more than 3,000 people have been infected with the virus globally.

Coronavirus mainly circulates among animals but has been known to infect humans in the past too, as has been seen with SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) and MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome).

International airports in Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Cochin have set up thermal screenings for the passengers returning from mainland China, Singapore, Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur.

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