All severe COVID-19 cases now clear of virus: Health Ministry official
The three most severe cases of COVID-19 in Vietnam have all become clear of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, a health official said on May 21, and there have been no COVID-19-related deaths in the country.
Director of the Health Ministry’s Department for Management of Medical Examination and Treatment Luong Ngoc Khue (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) - The three most severe cases of COVID-19in Vietnam have all become clear of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, a health official said on May21, and there have been no COVID-19-related deaths in the country.
Director of the Health Ministry’s Department for Managementof Medical Examination and Treatment Luong Ngoc Khue said the most severe case,Patient 91 - a British pilot with a Vietnamese airline being treated at theHospital for Tropical Diseases in HCM City - has tested negative forSARS-CoV-2 six consecutive times.
The patient has been transferred to the city’s Cho RayHospital for the treatment of other ailments, Khue said.
He added that during just one week, 59 people registered lungdonations to Patient 91, with the youngest volunteer being 21 years old and theoldest 76.
Appreciating their intentions, the official noted that thepatient needs two whole lungs, not just one or part of a lung, so donationsfrom brain-dead donors are the top priority.
Medical experts are also considering transferring the patientto the UK, since he is now free of COVID-19.
However, Khue said, the man remains in a coma and is onextracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) - a life support machine - so hemust regain consciousness before a suitable plan of action is determined.
Patient 91 was treated for COVID-19 for two months and threedays, including 46 days on ECMO, and his lungs were condensed by 90 percent.
A second CT scan shows that about 20-30 percent of his lungshave recovered and their function have also improved considerably. His pulse and blood pressure are also stable, according to Khue.
Another severe case is Patient 161, 88 years old, who hasalso now recovered from COVID-19 after receiving treatment at Hanoi’s NationalHospital for Tropical Diseases. She has also been discharged from Bach MaiHospital after being sent there for treatment of a stroke.
Meanwhile, Patient 19, who also suffered three cardiacarrests, is recovering and will leave hospital shortly, the official said.
On the afternoon of May 21, two patients at the NationalHospital for Tropical Diseases were declared to be clear of COVID-19 but willcontinue to be quarantined for another 14 days.
So far, 266 of the 324 COVID-19 patients in Vietnam haverecovered from the disease./.
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Director of the Health Ministry’s Department for Management of Medical Examination and Treatment Luong Ngoc Khue (Photo: VNA) 
