Infection and Drug Resistance (Nov 2021)
Highly Suspected COVID-19 Cluster with Multiple Negative SARS-CoV-2 RNA Tests: A Case Report
Abstract
Xialing Huang,1 Xiaoping Long,2 Jun Zi,3 Ping Liu4 1Department of Infectious Diseases, Leiyang People’s Hospital, Leiyang, Hunan, 421800, People’s Republic of China; 2Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of South China, Hengyang, Hunan, 421001, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Pediatrics, Leiyang, Hunan, 421800, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Emergency, People’s Hospital of Leiyang City, Leiyang, Hunan, 421800, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Xiaoping LongPulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of University of South China, Hengyang, Hunan, 421001, People’s Republic of ChinaTel +8613975403734Email [email protected]: The patient had several close contacts with friends from Wuhan, the epicenter of the epidemic. His mother and father had close contact with him. His father was later diagnosed with COVID-19 infection after a positive reverse transcription PCR test for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. The patient and his mother were diagnosed as suspected cases of COVID-19 based on a history of exposure, clinical manifestation, and imaging examination. However, the patient was tested more than three times with the reverse transcription PCR test for SARS-CoV-2 RNA, and the results were negative each time. COVID-19 should be suspected, regardless of SARS-CoV-2 test negativity, for recent close contact with a confirmed case and respiratory symptoms.Keywords: COVID-19, respiratory symptoms, suspected, negative, cluster
