LUTH doctors exposed to coronavirus as patient who failed to disclose travel history dies

Four doctors at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) are said to have gone into isolation after treating a 55-year-old man, who died of coronavirus complications on Friday, April 3, 2020.

According to Punch, the patient arrived at LUTH’s emergency unit on Thursday night complaining of “malaise, tremors, and fever.”

The patient, who was also diagnosed with acute chronic kidney disease and sepsis was reported to have been sent to the “spillover unit” of the hospital due to the unavailability of bed space.

A source who spoke to the Punch said the decease did not disclose his travel history after his admission into the facility.

The source said, “The man did not give his travel history or the fact that he had contact with someone who had travelled overseas.

“When asked, he told the doctors that he had no history of coughs, sore throat, joint pains or diarrhoea,”

However, when he developed complications, a junior doctor informed the senior registrar of his suspicion after reviewing his case.

Nigeria has recorded 4 coronavirus deaths. (Yahoo) AFP

Also, when a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test was conducted on his blood posthumously, it was discovered that the 55-year-old patient had coronavirus.

“After the Senior Registrar reviewed his case and confronted him with their findings, the man revealed the true story about his travels and his fear that he might have contracted COVID-19 and died shortly afterwards.

“He confessed that he had been coughing and that he had returned from Holland two weeks ago, where he had gone for follow-up treatment after a renal transplant he also had there,” the source was quoted to have said.

The patient died on Friday morning and Lagos state coronavirus emergency workers have reportedly taken the remains away.

But according to a medical practitioner popularly known as Dr Olufunmilayo on Twitter, four LUTH doctors have gone into isolation following the death of the man.

The doctor tweeted, "They were exposed to a patient in the accident and emergency room whose family has lied about his symptoms and hid the fact that he just came back from Europe".

The death of the 55-year-old man and one other patient brought coronavirus deaths in Nigeria to four. As of Friday, April 3, 2020, Nigeria had recorded 210 coronavirus cases.

So far, 25 patients have recovered and have been discharged from the Infectious Disease Hospital in Lagos.