MTehran 25 February _edical officials have assured that Iran will, in the near future, rein in the spread of a flu-like virus originating from China, and that conditions of most of the patients diagnosed with the new coronavirus have improved.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club(YJC)-Ali Akbar Velayati, head of Tehran’s Masih Daneshvari Hospital, said at a press conference on Monday that the task of responding to the novel coronavirus — named COVID-19 — is no harder than that of tackling an influenza epidemic in the country, which has been brought under control.
“Given the measures being taken to control the disease, we will have better news in the coming days and there is no reason for concern,” he said, assuring that there will soon be a decline in the spread of the epidemic and “the disease will be contained.”
He also said that the Masih Daneshvari Hospital is standing at the forefront of the country’s fight against the epidemic, noting that 50 percent of the 104 suspected coronavirus cases hospitalized at the facility either have fully recovered or are recovering.
Old patients and those suffering from diabetes and kidney problems are more vulnerable, said Velayati, who is also an advisor to Iran’s Leader.
The virus first emerged in China late last year and is now spreading in Europe and across the Middle East, giving rise to fears of a global pandemic. In Iran, the first cases and deaths were reported in the holy city of Qom — a major destination for Muslim pilgrims from across the world.
Based on latest official updates on Tuesday, 15 people have so far died and 95 have been infected with the new coronavirus nationwide, most of them in Qom.