Georgia thanks Germany for providing reagents to diagnose China-born coronavirus
Georgia has thanked the Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology and the Georgian consulate in Munich for providing the reagents.Photo:eptalaboratories.com.
Tweet 
Share
Georgia has thanked the Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology of Germany for providing the reagents which are used to diagnose the newly emerged coronavirus 2019-nCOV.
Head of the Georgian National Disease Control Centre Amiran Gamkrelidze stated earlier today that the reagents arrived in Georgia at Kutaisi International Airport at 1 a.m. this morning.
We are very grateful to the Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, with whom we have been cooperating closely over past several years, to make it possible for us to diagnose the new coronavirus in Tbilisi,” Gamkrelidze said.
He stated that in previous years, with the help of the Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, Georgia was able to diagnose Ebola, Zika and other infections.
Gamkrelidze says that two individuals who were in China and came to Georgia with flu symptoms last week have been tested for the coronavirus in the Lugar Lab of Tbilisi.
Last week we sent the biological materials of the two patents to the Netherlands and they tested negative for the new coronavirus. As soon as the reagents were in Tbilisi earlier today, we ourselves tested the patients for the new coronavirus and the result was the same,” Gamkrelidze said.
Georgian health official held a media briefing earlier today. Photo: NCDC.
He stated that as of now four individuals are in isolation at the hospital of infections in Tbilisi.
Gamkrelidze stated that two of the individuals who came from China went to the hospital with a fever, while the other two had high temperatures when checked by medics at Tbilisi International Airport and were transported to the hospital.
Gamkrelidze said that neither of the four have signs of the new coronavirus.
However, we are very cautious,” he stated, adding that the results of the laboratory test will be available soon.
- The virus has already killed 425 [only one case outside China, in the Philippines] and infected more than 20,000 [with more than 150 cases outside China].
- 632 people have recovered and discharged from hospitals.
- The virus has spread to 24 foreign states, with Georgia having no cases as of now.
- Georgia has temporarily suspended direct flights with China to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus.
- Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia said that the healthcare system is ready to efficiently respond to the challenge of the coronavirus if it appears in Georgia.
- The new coronavirus is thought to have emerged from illegally traded wildlife at a seafood market in Wuhan, China.
- The incubation period of the virus is around two weeks. It causes severe acute respiratory infection and symptoms mostly start with fever, followed by a dry cough.
The Lugar Laboratory in Tbilisi will have a new test to diagnose the new China-born coronavirus 2019-nCOV starting February 4, said the head of the National Centre for Disease Control and Public Health Amiran Gamkrelidze.
Georgian citizens are being evacuated from the Chinese city of Wuhan in Hubei province, where the new coronavirus originated. Turkey has evacuated three Georgian citizens among other passengers, while France has evacuated two. Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani has thanked both countries for arranging flights.
Two Georgian citizens who have come from China will be tested in Germany for the presence of the new coronavirus - 2019-nCov.A 24-year-old man who worked in China and a woman who came from Wuhan, China, which is the epicenter of the new virus outbreak, have no signs of pneumonia [which is the major symptom of the new coronavirus] and have a low temperature. However, they have none of the viruses Georgia can test individuals for inside the country.
Two Georgian citizens with flu symptoms who came to the country from China, have tested negative for the new coronavirus, head of the Georgian National Disease Control Centre Amiran Gamkrelidze stated earlier today, after receiving test results from the Netherlands.Georgia sent the blood samples of the patients to the Netherlands at the end of last week as at that time Georgia was unable to test people for the 2019-nCOV virus, which originated in the city of Wuhan of China at the end of 2019 and has already killed 425.
Georgia’s Russia-controlled region of Abkhazia has banned entry of non-Abkhaz at the so-called Enguri and Psou crossing points as of February 4, 2020, allegedly in an attempt to avoid the spread of seasonal viruses and the new China-born coronavirus, the chief medical officer of de-facto Abkhazia Lyudmila Storik told Sputnik
Three Georgian citizens, who have been evacuated from China amid the recent China-born coronavirus, have arrived in Tbilisi via Dubai. Luka Bukhrashvili, Nino Vashalomidze and Ani Tatishvili have gone through the required medical observation at the airport.
A Korean citizen with flu symptoms remains in Tbilisi Infectious Disease Hospital and samples will be taken in order to diagnose whether he is negative for the new coronavirus or not, said Tengiz Tsertsvadze, the head of the hospital.
Georgia has evacuated 34 of its citizens from China amid the coronavirus outbreak. Although none of them have the symptoms of the China-born virus, they will still be placed in two-week quarantine.
Georgia has warned its citizens in Italy, especially those in Lombardy, Veneto, Piedmont, Emilia Romagna and the Lazio regions, to avoid public areas and observe hygienic practices as Italy faces the worst outbreak of coronavirus - Covid-19 in Europe, with at least three people dead and more than 150 infected. The ministry urges Georgian citizens in Italy to stick to the recommendations of the Italian government and to remain informed.
Five patients with flu symptoms will be tested in the Lugar Laboratory in Tbilisi in order to diagnose whether they test negative for the new coronavirus.
The press office of the Administration of the Government of Georgia reports that a Georgian woman currently in Italy has been infected with the new coronavirus Covid-19.