In a first of its kind development in the relentless saga of coronavirus rampage across the world, a Covid-19 patient who was officially declared healthy after treatment has died of respiratory failure. The 36-year-old man died in Wuhan, the Chinese epicentre of the virus outbreak that has killed more than 3,000 people in the country. He had been discharged from the hospital five days ago after tests proved he was free of coronavirus. The news was reported by Shanghai-based news portal The Paper, the South China Morning Post said.
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The man, identified as Li Liang, started feeling unwell two days after leaving the hospital, his wife told the portal. His death certificate confirmed that he died of coronavirus. The certificate issued by the Wuhan health commission remarked that coronavirus was the cause of the death. It also added that the patient suffered from respiratory blockage. While being readmitted in the hospital, the patient had complained of dry mouth and gaseous stomach, the report added.
Earlier, the death of the 'recovered' patient was raised on discussion platform Reddit. "Coronavirus: 'Recovered' patient dies as China reports 139 new cases. A 36-year-old man has died in Wuhan from respiratory failure days after being discharged from hospital," a Reddit user wrote.
Discharged patients are being readmitted
The report also said that the hospital released an emergency communique saying that more discharged patients are being readmitted for treatment for coronavirus. The dead man was treated at Wuhan's Fangcang Hospital. As per the latest data released by China, some 52,045 people have been discharged from hospitals. The number of infections on the mainland stood 80,409 as of Wednesday.
Deadly virus is spreading vigorously
Reports of rising number of infections meanwhile came in from around the world on Thursday, showing that the deadly virus is spreading vigorously. Though the rate of new infections in China came down, the death toll has officially surpassed 3,200. In South Korea, three more people died while nearly 450 new cases of virus infections were reported. In the United States, coronavirus deaths rose to 11, even as the lawmakers reached a deal to make $8 billion available for fighting the epidemic.
Depleting supplies
The World Health Organization, which has said world is on an 'uncharted territory' owing to the deadly virus, warned later that the protective gear needed to fight the disease was "rapidly depleting". The world over, supplies of essential medical and pharmaceutical products are coming under pressure, resulting in panic buying, hoarding and inflated prices.
India, which has seen nearly two dozen infections so far, started witnessing a supply shortage for hand sanitisers and face masks on Wednesday amid new fears of wide-scale infections.
IMF announces $50 billion aid package
The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday announced a $50 billion aid program to combat the deadly coronavirus. The money will be available immediately, said IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, while announcing the package. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the money is ready to be disbursed immediately to fight coronavirus across the world. A message on IMF's official website read: "The IMF is making available about $50 billion through its rapid-disbursing emergency financing facilities."
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