Trace of COVID found weeks after isolation

| 14/01/2021 | 25 Comments
Cayman Islands health worker conducts COVID-19 test at the airport

(CNS): A member of the community who was tested as part of the regular COVID-19 front-line worker screening programme has received a very weak positive result. The individual and their household returned from the UK some weeks ago and have already been through the normal quarantine and screening process with no problems. Given that the result was at the very limits of detection, health officials said this could be a false positive.

Officials said the sample was one from the CMTH Doctors Hospital, according to a release issued this morning. Neither the individual nor anyone in their household have symptoms. All of them have been re-tested, which were all negative.

“It is likely that the positive test is a false positive, which can occur as a result of cross reactions with other viruses or genetic material and usually present results near the limits of detection,” officials stated. “In the interests of caution, the household will be isolated and monitored by Public Health, with further testing over the next few days.”

Given the circumstances, no further action is required by members of the public unless they have been contacted as part of the tracing protocols.

This news comes following another five positive results among travellers from a batch of 450 tests carried out on Wednesday. These five cases are all asymptomatic individuals who are isolating along with 1,187 others who have returned from overseas. There are currently 40 active cases of the virus among those in isolation, six of which have symptoms of COVID-19.

Meanwhile, 3,525 people have now been vaccinated and it is almost certain that Cayman will run out of full courses of the vaccine by the weekend. Leaders have urged everyone to get vaccinated as soon as they can and the public appears to have heeded the call. Governor Martyn Roper is now urging patience regarding the next batch which is expected at the end of the month.

“We await confirmation from the UK of our next batch, hopefully before the end of the month,” Roper said on his social media pages. “Vaccine supply is limited all over the world. We are fortunate to be receiving supplies. Production is stepping up and the UK’s commitment to supplying the OTs remains firm. But limited supplies means we will get a proportionate amount of what the UK has available relative to our population. So we will have to remain patient.”


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Category: Health, Medical Health

Comments (25)

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  1. Fire on the Hill says:

    How many people are really paying attention to what’s really going and where the threats and the breaches are now coming whilst our Deputy’s premier and his private defense contractor Daggaro are playing games in the Brac illegal canoes of drugs and the risk of infected Covid smugglers are turning up on our shores with the possibility of spreading Covid 19 in our community .This recent drug canoe which was found overturned and occupants missing obviously now running about freely and not in our mandatory 14 day quarantine should cause some to be alarm but our dear leader and our benevolent governor seem or appear more concerned about how BA flights they can landed at ORIA.Do your friggin Job Alden Protect our Borders you and Roper need to be Fired!

  2. Anonymous says:

    This “weak positive” is like due to too many test cycles. Overamplified and detecting other things (a cold) like in the case of the Prospect Primary student.

    • Anonymous says:

      Very coincidental. Hmmmmmmm.

      • Anonymous says:

        Thats a word I keep hearing “coincidence”. Yes, always a possibility when there is no proof of anything…

      • Anonymous says:

        I don’t think it’s “coincidence”. I think they’re running those tests to the limits and therefore getting positives that aren’t even Covid.

  3. WBW Premier. says:

    I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, we need to achieve community transmission to get rid of this virus and achieve herd immunity.

    • Anonymous says:

      OK, you start the ball rolling and deliberately get infected.

      • Anonymous says:

        ….and also with his/her own family first…assuming they are all on board….of course?

        Thanks – let us know how it all works out for you and yours…….!!!

    • StopTheCrime says:

      NO!!! If you can catch it more than once (which we already have proven cases of), there is no herd immunity. That would be like asking everybody to catch Dengue Fever, just to see who survives.

    • Anonymous says:

      You are an idiot? Seriously, are you related to Donald Trump?

    • Edgar Poe says:

      If that worked many US cities would not be swamped with deaths every day.

    • Anonymous says:

      That is working out so well for the UK…Do you actually read anything apart from conspiracy theories?

  4. Anonymous says:

    Starting today, all returning residents and other categories of travelers, over the age of ten, who are allowed to enter the Cayman Islands under the current rules, must have evidence of a negative PCR test from an accredited laboratory taken no more than 72 hours prior to departure.

    If our 40 “inbound” positives aren’t dropping to near zero, over the next couple weeks, then I hope Travel Time will implement further restrictions on inbound loads.

  5. Anonymous says:

    Are Public Health officials periodically monitoring and retesting those that have had previous Covid-19 episodes and “recovered”, to ensure the disease isn’t laying dormant and periodically resurging? Immunity endurance is variable.

    • Anonymous says:

      There’s a difference between a dormant disease resurging in the same host, and immunity reducing over time until reinfection. The former isn’t being reported with Covid (is it?) and the later isn’t occurring in Cayman because no community spread. So retesting for those specific reasons would be a waste of effort.

      • Anonymous says:

        The former is being reported in rare cases. 44/14000 in the SIREN study were reinfected within 5 months of recovery. There are published cases on USA and Canada of some very unfortunate people having bouts 2, 3 or more times, even after negative PCR “recoveries”. This has been well reported. It’s also why I’d prefer the vaccine to the disease!

        https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00071-6

        • Anonymous says:

          Multiple infections in same person is still VERY rare. You prefer the vaccine for this reason? Are you aware that there is not yet any proof that the vaccine prevents catching/transmitting it nor any proof that it will provide long-term protection/immunity? Some studies are showing that the antibodies might last less than a year. I’m hoping this turns out to be false and it will be life-long immunity not just short-term protection in the form of reduction of symptoms.

  6. Indignant says:

    We may be a colony but are we also beggars, holding our hands out for alms?.

  7. Anonymous says:

    we will be very lucky to escape from covid without another community transmission incident.
    too many unnecessary trips with negligent safety protocols by cig.

    • Anonymous says:

      Idiot!

      After returning home and seeing the system it is much better than the 10 other countries I have been to in the last 3 months.

      Even though 14 days is an overkill and it should be 8 Days.

      • Anonymous says:

        The system is much better than the 10 other countries you visited in large part because of the 14 day isolation requirement. Places that have tried shorter periods of time have had Covid community spread outbreaks – Bermuda for example.

        • Anonymous says:

          Nope most other islands are better as the had pre testing!.

          Canada is a joke you can fly into Toronto and the travel domestically for a day even stay at hotels if you need to overnight!

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