In Argentineaccording to a statement issued by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) on September 1, 2022, the Ministry of Health informed the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) of the notification by the Ministry of Public Health of the province of Tucuman in the north of the country, the detection of a cluster of 6 cases of bilateral pneumonia in six patients without etiological identification to date on August 30.
The reported cases are five health workers and one patient hospitalized in the intensive care unit of a private clinic in the city of San Miguel de Tucuman. Symptoms appeared between August 18 and 22, with fever, myalgia, abdominal pain and dyspnea. All six cases had bilateral pneumonia; two of them have died, three are hospitalized and one is in home isolation in stable condition. All cases are linked to the same care center.
The samples were tested by the local public health laboratory for respiratory viruses, and other viral agents including SARS-CoV-2 and Hantaviruses, bacterial and fungal. All tests were negative. The samples were sent to the National Administration of Laboratories and Health Institutes, for further testing, including toxicology analysis, which is ongoing.
On September 1, the Tucuman Ministry of Public Health reported 3 additional patients, all healthcare workers, whose symptoms emerged between August 20 and 23, showing similar symptoms to the 6 previously reported cases.
On September 2, the government of Tucumán reported a 10th case: Case number 10 is an 81-year-old man with comorbidities and hospitalized in serious condition in the public sector.
Sources : Outbreak News Today ; France Diplomatie, Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs.
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