Coronavirus: 68 per cent of cases confirmed in China in past eight days had no symptoms
- Of the 885 infections reported between March 31 and April 7, 601 people showed no visible signs, National Health Commission says
- But scientists say data set is too small to draw any conclusions about how Covid-19 spreads
While the ratio might appear high, the small data set meant it was too early to make any conclusions, according to Leo Poon Lit-man, head of the public health laboratory sciences division at the University of Hong Kong.
“We don’t know what these figures mean without having the same data [on asymptomatic patients] for the past three months,” he said.
“But what we do know, is that these asymptomatic patients could be pre-symptomatic and infectious despite not displaying symptoms.
“Therefore the virus is still being transmitted inside the country … and these patients should be treated in isolation and put under close observation.”
The NHC only began releasing the number of symptom-free cases last Wednesday, starting with figures for March 31 in a move it said was necessary to “address public concerns”.