RALEIGH — Five more North Carolina residents have tested positive for the new coronavirus strain, bringing the number of cases to seven statewide, authorities said Monday.
All five new patients are from Wake County and all of them traveled to Boston to attend a BioGen conference, the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services said in a news release. Several cases of COVID-19 across the country have been linked to the conference, according to the news release.
Officials said tests in the five new cases are being sent to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for final confirmation.
Health officials said the new cases are not related to another Wake County resident who tested positive last week. There also was an earlier case in Chatham County.
The department said the Wake County Public Health Division is working to identify close contacts with the newly affected patients and determine whether additional measures are necessary.
For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover. In mainland China, where the virus first exploded, more than 80,000 people have been diagnosed and more than 58,000 have so far recovered.”
On Monday, North Carolina officials also said someone from Indiana who tested positive for the disease was in Durham and Wake counties from March 2-6 while showing symptoms of COVID-19.
That person is isolated in their home in Indiana, and local health officials are trying to identify people in the Triangle area who may have encountered them.
South Carolina, meanwhile, has seven reported coronavirus cases.
