Man in his 50s diagnosed with coronavirus; Ontario’s 7th positive case
Published February 28, 2020 at 4:27 pm
A 50-year-old man has been diagnosed with Ontario’s seventh positive case of coronavirus.
Dr. David Williams, Chief Medical Officer of Health, says after arriving in Toronto on Feb. 25, a man in his 50s presented himself at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre’s emergency department on Feb 26 with a travel history to Iran.
“The established infection prevention and control protocols were initiated,” according to the provincial government. The patient was cared for at the hospital using all appropriate precautions, including being isolated as he was being tested for COVID-19″.
The man was discharged home the same day and, per protocols, went into self-isolation where he remains.
The Ontario government adds that the risk of being infected with COVID-19 in Ontario remains very low.
Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that can cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to more serious respiratory infections like bronchitis, pneumonia or severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).
Coronaviruses are spread mainly from person to person through close contact, for example, in a household, workplace or health care centre.
Some human coronaviruses spread easily between people, while others do not.
Your risk of severe disease may be higher if you have a weakened immune system. This may be the case for:
- older people
- people with chronic disease (for example, diabetes, cancer, heart, renal or chronic lung disease)