KUALA LUMPUR: The death of a patient at a hospital in Penang yesterday is not due to Covid-19 infection, said Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah (pix).
In a statement today, he said results of the clinical samples taken from the patient for Covid-19 testing as well as laboratory tests conducted today confirmed that the patient was negative for the virus.
“The patient had no travel history to China or had close contact with any patient who tested positive for Covid-19. The patient received treatment at a hospital in Penang due to cough and swelling on both feet on Feb 10.
“Besides that, the person also had other chronic health issues and was treated in the Intensive Care Unit after the condition worsened,“ he said adding that the patient died yesterday due to septic shock with multiorgan failure complicated with cardiogenic shock
He was responding to a Mandarin newspaper report which led to speculation that the death of the individual could be due to Covid-19.
In another development, the Health Ministry through a posting on its Facebook page today denied claims that there was a case of Covid-19 infection at the Selayang Hospital.
A 25-second video clip claiming that the virus had infected a person at the hospital has also made its round on social media.
“It is a fake video recording. Stop spreading fake news, be a matured and responsible social media users,“ it said.
In the video, several individuals wearing white suits and face masks were seen standing in front of the hospital’s emergency unit. — Bernama
