Coronavirus cases in Wuhan slow slightly: experts

By Li Lei and Wang Keju | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2020-02-25 00:22

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Among the COVID-19 patients admitted by the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University from Hunan Province, the first batch of 11 patients with severe symptoms were discharged from the Zhongfaxincheng campus of Tongji Hospital affiliated to Huazhong University of Science and Technology in Wuhan, with the eldest 82 and the youngest 38 years old. [Photo\Xinhua]

The growth of new infections in Wuhan, the center of the novel coronavirus outbreak, has slowed compared with earlier data, yet the situation there remains challenging, according to Liang Wannian, head of the Chinese expert panel on outbreak response and disposal.

Wannian told a joint news conference with the World Health Organization on Monday that despite the turn for better, the situation in Wuhan is still grim, with daily new confirmed cases and suspected cases around 400 respectively.

Speaking alongside Liang, Canadian epidemiologist Bruce Aylward who leads the WHO mission team said that the new infections could decline faster in Wuhan in the months to come.

Cases in Wuhan have been going down for more than 10 days. They're at a point now where the number of cured people coming out of hospital each day is much more than the sick going in as a good indicator, Aylward said.

But challenges still remain, especially the strain on the medical system with tens of thousands of sick people in the makeshift hospital or designated hospitals, he added.

"There's no question that they're going the right direction. If you follow the numbers, you'll see that they're dropping faster," he said.