The PCR sample, taken from a woman who is under monitoring and isolated in an Alicante hospital, was sent last night to the National Center for Microbiology. This action was taken because the patient traveled on the same plane from which a person who died from hantavirus was evacuated.
The sample was registered at the center at 3:00 AM and the PCR results are expected to be available within 24 to 48 hours. The woman, 32 years old, was admitted yesterday to a hospital in the Alicante district and is in an isolation room with negative pressure, presenting mild respiratory symptoms, mainly coughing.
“"If the PCR result is negative, it is repeated 24 hours after confirming the sample result. If the second PCR is also negative, the patient will be considered a contact in quarantine and will be transferred to the Gómez Ulla Central Defense Hospital in Madrid. If the PCR were positive, the woman would be evacuated to the High-Level Isolation and Treatment Unit of La Fe Hospital in Valencia."
The protocol established by the Ministry of Health indicates that, if the first PCR is negative, a second test will be performed 24 hours later. In case of two negative results, the patient will be considered a contact in quarantine and transferred to the Gómez Ulla Central Defense Hospital in Madrid. However, if the PCR were positive, the woman would be evacuated to the High-Level Isolation and Treatment Unit of La Fe Hospital in Valencia to receive appropriate treatment.
