World Health Organization (WHO) announced Thursday a new method to detect coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
WHO Executive Directory for Health Emergencies Dr. Mike Ryan said in a press conference in Geneva, Switzerland the sudden spike of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Hubei province is attributed to how cases are being diagnosed and reported.
Dr. Ryan said medical professionals can now classify a suspected case of COVID-19 through chest imaging.
Under the method, medical professionals can now diagnose a suspected patient as clinically-confirmed case rather than confirming it through laboratory tests.
He stressed that the chest imaging will greatly help in fighting the dreaded virus as health authorities can focus more on contact tracing and other important preventive measures to be implemented.
”This allows clinicians to move and report cases more quickly,” Dr. Ryan said.
“There have been some backlogs in testing and this is also going to help ensure that people get adequate care and adequate public health measures can be taken.“
Meanwhile, WHO clarified that the reported 13,332 cases in Hubei are not confirmed cases of COVID-19 but rather suspected cases turned clinically-confirmed.
The UN-health agency added that they will continue to monitor laboratory-confirmed and clinically-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Hubei province.
The agency also stressed that laboratory confirmation for reporting is still required in the rest of China and other countries.
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