Expert: "Discharge Should Be Possible When Fever and Respiratory Distress Improve"

Bang Ji-hwan, Director of the Central Infectious Disease Hospital Operations Center

[Asia Economy Reporter Donghoon Jeong] Experts have suggested easing discharge criteria as hospital beds become scarce due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

On the 1st, Bang Ji-hwan, head of the Central Infectious Disease Hospital Operation Center, said at a press conference of the Central Clinical Committee held at the National Medical Center in Jung-gu, Seoul, "There are cases where severe patients cannot receive treatment because patients who have improved clinically cannot be discharged," adding, "I think it is better for asymptomatic patients to be discharged immediately."

Bang's suggestion is based on the current requirement that patients must test negative twice at 24-hour intervals after symptoms disappear to be discharged, but he emphasized the need to adjust the criteria to allow discharge based on symptom improvement alone.

Bang cited improvement in fever and dyspnea as specific discharge criteria. He said, "Coughing (dry cough) does not affect the decision to discharge," explaining, "Patients who have had pneumonia, colds, or respiratory infections experience airway hypersensitivity, causing dry and residual coughs to persist for some time." He continued, "It is recommended that patients self-isolate at home for 21 days after discharge," adding, "According to foreign data, most patients whose clinical symptoms have improved no longer shed the virus after 21 days."

Meanwhile, among the confirmed cases in Daegu, the region with the highest number of infections, 898 out of 2,569 confirmed cases as of 9 a.m. today (773 in Daegu and 125 in other regions) have been hospitalized. 1,661 patients are waiting for hospitalization at home. Among those waiting, 19 severe patients requiring priority hospitalization have been identified.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.