First case of COVID identified in Wuhan was days later than previously reported: Reports

The first documented case of Covid-19 was a lady who worked there, according to virologist Michael Worobey.

First case of COVID identified in Wuhan was days later than previously reported gcw

Beijing, First Published Nov 19, 2021, 11:20 AM IST | Last Updated Nov 19, 2021, 11:20 AM IST

The first instance of Covid-19 found in Wuhan, China, and described as such by the World Health Organization was days later and at an animal market, according to a senior scientist writing in the journal Science on Thursday. The first documented case of Covid-19 was a lady who worked there, according to virologist Michael Worobey. That critical piece of information, along with Worobey's examination of other early instances of Covid-19 in the city, definitely tilt the scales in favour of the virus having originated in an animal, according to Worobey.

With no conclusive proof, specialists have debated the virus's origins since the outbreak began over two years ago. Worobey was one of the 15 or so specialists who submitted an editorial in Science in mid-May requesting that the virus's origins be investigated thoroughly. In his most recent publication, he suggested that his investigation into the outbreak's genesis "provides substantial evidence of a live-animal market origin of the pandemic."

Health officials raised the alert about cases of a suspicious disease linked to the market as early as December 30, 2019. Worobey investigated incidents reported by two hospitals previous to the notice's issuance to contradict that assertion. Those instances were mostly related to the market, whereas those that weren't were geographically concentrated near it.

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According to Worobey, half of the early cases in this 11-million-person city are tied to a soccer-field-sized region, and it becomes much more difficult to explain that tendency if the epidemic did not originate in the market. Another objection levelled against the hypothesis was that the first example found had nothing to do with the market. However, while the WHO report said that the individual initially identified as patient zero became unwell on December 8, according to Worobey, he did not become ill until December 16.

This conclusion was based on a video interview he discovered, a case detailed in a scholarly journal, and a hospital medical record that matched the 41-year-old guy, which implies that the first documented case was the woman who worked in the market and became unwell on December 11. Worobey's study persuaded Peter Daszak, a disease specialist who was part of the WHO investigative team.

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