Man, after developing “flu-like” symptoms, rushed to hospital; he and five of his contacts have been isolated

The first COVID-19 positive patient from Kodagu, who had recovered and discharged sometime ago, was readmitted to the hospital in Madikeri on Wednesday after he developed ‘flu-like’ symptoms.

The man from Kondangeri village, who was discharged as per the recommended protocols on April 7, had reportedly developed fever and other symptoms. He rushed to the COVID-19 hospital on his own along with five of his contacts for treatment.

The man had been kept in a special isolation ward – not in the isolation ward where other suspected cases had been kept – to avoid any risks. His throat swabs had been collected and sent already to the Mysuru’s VRDL lab for testing.

“The man came to the hospital at noon on Wednesday saying he has developed fever. He had with him some five persons, who were his contacts. The patient and five others had been immediately isolated and their throat swabs had been collected. The samples had reached Mysuru and we expect the results, especially of the first patient, either by tonight or Thursday,” said Kodagu DHO Mohan.

Speaking to The Hindu over phone, Dr. Mohan said, “We need to wait till the lab results to comment on the case. It could be a normal fever or a common cold. We are closely monitoring the case. When he had discharged him, he had recovered fully from the infection and was in good health.”

Perhaps, it’s a first case of a patient in the State, after having recovered from the contagion, developing symptoms of fever and getting readmitted.

Kodagu had almost nil cases after the first and sole positive case was reported on March 19. In fact, Kodagu was cited by the Ministry of Health as one of the few districts in the country which had not reported new infections after a long gap.