Health department tracking coronavirus spread, no confirmed cases in Wyoming

Posted 1/28/20

With a handful of novel coronavirus cases now reported in the United States, the Wyoming Department of Health says it’s closely monitoring the situation and sharing recommendations with Wyoming …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

E-mail
Password
Log in

Health department tracking coronavirus spread, no confirmed cases in Wyoming

Posted

With a handful of novel coronavirus cases now reported in the United States, the Wyoming Department of Health says it’s closely monitoring the situation and sharing recommendations with Wyoming healthcare providers.

“At this point, no reported or suspected cases have been identified in Wyoming,” said Dr. Alexia Harrist, state health officer and state epidemiologist, in a news release Monday. “We have communicated the latest information regarding patient care, infection control and testing procedures with healthcare providers across Wyoming and will continue to share updates as needed.”

She called it “clearly a quickly growing and changing situation.”

Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses, some of which cause the common cold. The origins of the 2019 novel coronavirus appear to be linked to a large seafood and animal market in Wuhan, China. The disease has spread with cases now reported in several other countries, including the U.S.

“At this time, the risk of infection appears to be most closely linked to recent travel to Wuhan, China, or direct close contact with a person with confirmed novel coronavirus infection,” said Clay Van Houten, Infectious Disease Epidemiology Unit manager. “If we have a suspected case reported in Wyoming, we will follow up appropriately with patient and community safety in mind.”

Although scientists are still learning about this newly discovered virus, symptoms of infection have included mild to severe respiratory illness with fever, cough and shortness of breath.

Comments