Vietnam: 1 more COVID-19 case returning from Russia, quarantined after entry
The 6am news on May 24 of the National Steering Committee for Covid-19 Prevention and Control reported that one new case of Covid-19 was recorded, a person returning from Russia on flight VN0062 on May 13, who was quarantined upon entry, with no possibility of spreading the infection to the community. Thus, up to this point, Vietnam has had 325 cases.
This is a 34-year-old female patient residing in Gia Vien, Ninh Binh. The patient had contracted Covid-19 in Russia and recovered before returning to Vietnam. On May 13, the patient returned to Van Don Airport from Moscow on flight VN0062 and was immediately quarantined at Regiment 125, Hai Duong. There, the patient was tested and the result was negative. On May 21, the patient was tested again and the test result from the Hai Duong Provincial Center for Disease Control was positive on May 22.
COVID-19 situation in Southeast Asia
Thailand began the third phase of lockdown easing on June 1, as the number of Covid-19 cases in the country recorded a positive decline and no new cases were recorded in the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, Indonesia maintained a state of emergency after May 29 and canceled the Muslim New Year celebrations of Idul Fitri. On May 23, the number of Covid-19 cases in Indonesia was 949, a sharp increase from 634 cases on May 22. As of now, Indonesia has 21,745 Covid-19 cases and 1,351 deaths.
On the same day, the Malaysian Prime Minister's Office announced that Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin will be quarantined at his residence for 14 days after an official who attended a recent meeting chaired by him tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19.
Laos received good news on May 22 when it entered the 40th consecutive day without new infections. To date, Laos still has only 19 Covid-19 cases, of which 14 have recovered. Currently, Laos' international border gates adjacent to neighboring countries have basically reopened for cargo transportation and immigration activities.
Meanwhile, Singapore recorded 642 new infections on May 23, bringing the total number of infections to 31,068, including 23 deaths.
South Korea discovers new high-risk outbreak
On the morning of May 23, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) announced that the total number of cases of the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) causing Covid-19 acute respiratory disease in the country increased by 23 cases to 11,165. Korea also recorded 2 more deaths while 32 more Covid-19 patients fully recovered, bringing the total number of cured cases to 10,194.
South Korea has relaxed social distancing measures and switched to "daily life quarantine" starting on May 6, but soon after that, the country's health authorities discovered a highly contagious outbreak in the famous multicultural neighborhood of Itaewon in Seoul and recently an outbreak in Samsung Hospital, also in Seoul.
India becomes the second epidemic outbreak in Asia
The number of SARS-CoV-2 infections in India has now increased to more than 130,000 people, making the South Asian country surpass China to become the 11th largest Covid-19 outbreak in the world and the second in Asia, after Iran.
India recorded more than 6,500 new cases yesterday, the highest daily increase since the outbreak began in the world's second-most populous country. The complex developments show that India still faces a serious challenge ahead even though the South Asian country is implementing the world's largest lockdown to prevent the spread of the virus.
Iran allows opening of tourist and religious facilities
President Hassan Rouhani announced that tourist sites in Iran, including museums and historical sites, will be allowed to reopen from May 24, after nearly three months of closure due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Religious holy sites will also be allowed to reopen on May 25, while all workers in Iran will return to work from May 30.
President Rouhani said Iran has completed three phases of its plan to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic. In the fourth phase, Iranian authorities will aim to control the Covid-19 epidemic. The death rate from the SARS-CoV-2 virus in Iran has begun to decrease, while the hospital stay of Covid-19 patients has also been shortened.
Bulgaria allows entry to citizens from EU and Schengen countries
Bulgaria has lifted its ban on visitors from the European Union (EU) and the Schengen area. The Health Ministry said that visitors entering Bulgaria will still be required to undergo a 14-day quarantine. However, the 14-day period will no longer apply to Bulgarian citizens and citizens of other EU countries for humanitarian reasons, as well as to representatives of trade, economic and investment activities.
The quarantine will also not apply to people directly involved in the construction, maintenance, operation and safety of Bulgaria's strategic and critical infrastructure.
Italy's COVID-19 vaccines show promising results
Director General of the Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA) Nicola Magrini said that 5-6 promising vaccines against Covid-19 are showing good results and are expected to be produced in spring 2021. Meanwhile, President of the Italian Higher Institute of Health (ISS) Silvio Brusaferro said that in all regions, the number of new cases is decreasing but there are still differences between regions and divided into 3 areas.
The epidemic curve is stabilizing and decreasing, however, he did not rule out the possibility of an increase in the number of infections in the coming weeks, thus advising people not to relax personal protection measures.
Brazil extends border closure for another 30 days
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has extended the border closure for another 30 days as the South American country has become the second-most infected country in the world after the United States. With more than 330,000 cases, Brazil's death toll has reached 21,000, and health experts believe the number could be much higher than officially reported due to Brazil's lack of mass testing.
Therefore, the Brazilian government's official gazette published on the evening of May 22 (local time) said that this border closure order will apply to both land and air traffic, except for commercial traffic. In addition, the entry ban is also exempted for Brazilian citizens and foreigners temporarily or permanently residing in the country according to diplomatic missions.
Peru extends social distancing order until June 30
Peruvian President Martín Vizcarra announced that he will extend the social isolation order to deal with the Covid-19 acute respiratory infection until June 30, although the social distancing measures will be adjusted more flexibly. Accordingly, the national nighttime curfew will be in effect from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m., an hour less than before.
The decision to extend the social isolation order was made after the Peruvian Ministry of Health on the same day recorded the number of Covid-19 cases in the country to 111,698 people, including 3,244 deaths, an increase of 2,929 new cases and 60 new deaths within 24 hours.
Mexico's COVID-19 deaths hit record high in one day
Yesterday, the Mexican Ministry of Health announced that the number of deaths due to Covid-19 in the past 24 hours increased by a record 479, bringing the total number of deaths to 6,989, the number of infected people to 62,527 and 33,801 suspected cases. Authorities said that in addition to the number of deaths in the country, 966 of its citizens died from Covid-19 abroad. To date, Mexico has conducted 210,070 tests.
In response to the pandemic, the Mexican government continues to sign contracts to purchase medical equipment from China and the United States. Currently, 12 shipments of medical supplies from China and three from the United States have arrived in Mexico. Although the Covid-19 pandemic is complicated, with the number of cases and deaths doubling in the past two weeks, the Mexican government is still gradually reopening the economy.
Antiviral drug Remdesivir is effective in treating COVID-19
On May 23, the US Government's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) announced the final results of the trial of the antiviral drug Remdesivir. Accordingly, this drug has proven effective in treating the SARS-CoV-2 virus, shortening the recovery time of patients.
According to NIAID, intravenous injections of Remdesivir for 10 consecutive days accelerated the recovery of Covid-19 patients, more effectively than a placebo in clinical trials of 1,000 patients in 10 countries around the world. However, the authors of the above trial said the drug did not completely prevent deaths. About 7.1% of patients who received Remdesivir in the trial group died within 14 days, compared with 11.9% in the placebo group.
