First case in Vizianagaram as woman tests positive

VIZIANAGARAM: Vizianagaram, which so far remained as the only coronavirus-free district and enjoyed the lone ‘green zone district’ status, recorded its first Covid-19 case on Wednesday when a 45-year-old woman from Chilakalapalli village of Balijipeta Mandal tested positive for the virus. 

District medical and health officials said the woman has chronic kidney disease, and recently went to Visakhapatnam to undergo dialysis at CARE Hospital. The doctors there initially conducted TruNat tests on her, and the results showed a ‘mild’ positive. On May 4, her swab samples were collected and sent to the Virus Research and Diagnostic Laboratory (VRDL) at the Andhra Medical College in Visakhapatnam, and the results returned on Wednesday.

Officials, however, are yet to ascertain how the woman contracted the virus. Medical and health officials from Parvatipuram visited the woman’s village and started tracing her contacts. Officials shifted 11 of them to the Vizianagaram district hospital for screening and throat swab collection. “A total of 50 teams were formed to take up disinfecting activity in the village, which has 2,500 households,” officials said. However, disinfecting work could not be taken up on Wednesday due to heavy rains. Cluster containment will be taken up immediately.