Da Nang has confirmed one new positive case of the novel coronavirus, bringing the total number of infected patients in the city to 6, the municipal Department of Health announced on Wednesday.

The latest case was confirmed in a 27-year-old Vietnamese woman returning from Sweden. She has become the 135^th case to be diagnosed with coronavirus in Viet Nam till date.  

The city’s 6^th patient worked for a restaurant in Lund City, Sweden.

On 19 March, she went to Denmark by train. Then, she left Denmark for Viet Nam and transited via Doha, Qatar and Bangkok, Thailand. She arrived in Da Nang International Airport on the flight PG947 (seat number 16A) at 12.40pm on 21 March.

After implementing entry procedures and making health declaration with local health officials at the city’s airport, the woman was sent to the Centre for Training National Defense and Security Knowledge, located at 86 Nguyen Chanh in Lien Chieu District, for 14-day quarantine at 3.00pm on 21 March.

From 21 - 24 March, the woman was placed in isolation in the room No 14 with 19 others.

On 23 March, the staff of the city's Centre for Disease Control took throat swabs and blood serum samples of the woman to test for the new virus. As a result, her tests came back positive at 9.30pm on 24 March.

Currently, the infected patient is receiving treatment at the Da Nang General Hospital, and her health conditions are stable.

After the woman tested positive for the virus on Tuesday, local health officials have identified a total of 130 passengers who shared a plane with her from Thailand to Da Nang on 21 March. All of the air passengers are Vietnamese citizens and they are quarantined at the same place with the patient. They then tested negative for the virus on 24 March.

Also, the Da Nang CDC reported the confirmed case to the municipal Department of Health. The department worked with the Centre for Training National Defense and Security Knowledge to isolate the patient for control of infection purposes. Contact tracing were conducted to identify close contacts of the confirmed case. Medical staff also sprayed disinfectant at a room where the patient had stayed, and around her quarantine site.

The municipal Department of Health has traced 41 close contacts of the infected patient. Among the close contacts are 19 women who shared a room with the patient, and 22 people who sat near her on a flight from Thailand to Da Nang. All the close contacts are quarantined at a designated area in the Centre for Training National Defense and Security Knowledge to monitor their health.

By PHAN CHUNG - Translated by MAI DUNG