#NOCOMECUENTO. Social media and various (non-reliable) online websites claimed the first case of coronavirus in Costa Rica. That is not so. Costa Rica DOES NOT have any suspicious or confirmed cases of coronavirus (Covid-19).
The Ministerio de Salud (Ministry of Health) ruled out that the patient – a woman – admitted to the San Juan de Dios Hospital has the Covid-19 type coronavirus.
She had a generic test in a private hospital in Escazu, which indicated that she had a coronavirus, but did not specify which type. Before this, more protocols were applied that ruled out that it was the virus, originated in the city of Wuhan, China.
“The Ministry of Health clarifies that there are other types of coronaviruses (4 in total) that normally circulate in humans. The tests available to coronavirus hospitals can detect these 4 types. It is common for us to have positive patients with those other 4 coronaviruses,” said the Ministry of Health in a statement.
The Ministry of Health said that in the case of a suspected case of the new Covid-19 coronavirus, the analysis can only be analyzed in the Inciensa laboratory.
“We DO NOT currently have suspected cases of the new Coronavirus in our country. We will promptly inform you of any suspicious cases,” explained the health entity.
One website (we won’t mention the name), raised the alert on social media of a confirmed case of the coronavirus in the country. The debunked report said the woman, who was in Italy days ago and now in Costa Rica, had tested positive for the coronavirus applied by health authorities at the San Jose airport.
The website does mention that the, though the woman is a carrier of the coronavirus, “it does not necessarily mean that she is a SARS-CoV-2 type” (sic). The same website does continue with the ministry of Health findings but appears to be missed by most readers.
Costa Rica has implemented protocols for persons arriving having visited China, South Korea, Italy and Iran.
