ILOILO – A 27-day-old baby boy in Estancia, Iloilo became Western Visayas’ youngest person to contract SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
The infant is asymptomatic and being isolated at the quarantine facility of the town, according to Dr. Greg Rolan Sumile, municipal health officer of Estancia.
Born to a COVID-negative mother at the Jesus M. Colmenares District Hospital in Balasan on Aug. 29, the baby was brought to the Western Visayas Medical Center (WVMC) in Mandurriao district after developing jaundice.
According to Sumile, the baby showed improvement after several days at the WVMC.
“Nag-improve ang [condition sang] bata kag [bilang protocol sang hospital], gin-swab and it turned out nga positive sya pero nagapabilin nga maayo ang iya kondisyon,” Sumile explained.
Hospital authorities also subjected the parents to swabbing but neither of them is infected, said Sumile.
“Subong ang bata ari na sa aton isolation facility kag nagapadayun ang monitor naton sa iya and so far okay ang baby,” he added.
Sumile suspects that the baby contracted the infection at WVMC.
“Ang isa ka ward nga ginhalinan sang isa ka COVID-positive patient didto man gin-transfer [ang baby]. I don’t know kon ano ang plastada kay according sa akon nabatian, ang mga kabataan nga ginbutang nila didto natapikan man sang virus,” Sumile said.
Prior to the release of the baby’s test result, the region’s youngest COVID-19 case was a two-month-old boy (Patient No. 344) from Moises Padilla, Negros Occidental and a three-year-old girl (Patient No. 280) from Alimodian, Iloilo.
COVID-19 is the infectious disease caused by the most recently discovered coronavirus. This new virus and disease were unknown before the outbreak began in Wuhan, China in December 2019.
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. Some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but don’t develop any symptoms and don’t feel unwell.
COVID-19 can spread from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth which are spread when a person with COVID-19 coughs or exhales./PN
