An 82-year-old Singaporean who initially tested negative for Covid-19 was among two unlinked community cases announced yesterday.
The retiree developed a runny nose, body aches and chills on Feb 14, and sought medical treatment at a general practitioner clinic on Feb 22, said the Ministry of Health (MOH).
He was tested for the virus but the result came back negative.
He had registered for a Covid-19 vaccination on Feb 22, but did not proceed with the appointment as he had been advised earlier by his doctor to postpone the jab if he was feeling unwell, added MOH.
On Monday, he sought treatment again as he was still unwell and was swabbed for Covid-19.
His test came back positive the next day and he was taken in an ambulance to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID).
His serological test result has come back negative, indicating that this is likely a current infection, added MOH.
The second community case is a 38-year-old permanent resident who is a housewife.
She is asymptomatic and her infection was detected when she took a Covid-19 pre-departure test on Tuesday in preparation for a trip to India, said MOH.
Her result came back positive yesterday and she was taken to NCID. Her serological test result is pending.
There were also 21 imported cases confirmed by MOH, taking Singapore's total to 59,979.
They tested positive while serving stay-home notices upon their arrival in Singapore, said MOH.
Among the imported cases is a permanent resident who arrived from Indonesia.
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Update on cases
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New cases:23
Imported: 21 (1 permanent resident, 20 work pass holders)
In community: 2 (1 Singaporean and 1 PR)
In dormitories: 0
New community cases in the past week: 4 (4 unlinked cases)
Active cases: 101
In hospitals: 18 (1 in ICU)
In community facilities: 83
Deaths: 29
Patients with Covid-19 who died of other causes: 15
Total discharged: 59,834
Discharged yesterday: 7
TOTAL CASES: 59,979
The remaining 20 cases are work pass holders who travelled from India, Nepal and Nigeria.
Mustafa Centre, Sri Vadapathira Kaliamman Temple and GHK 407 Food House in Ang Mo Kio were among places visited by Covid-19 patients while they were still infectious, said MOH.
Overall, the number of new cases in the community has increased from two cases in the week before, to four cases in the past week.
The number of unlinked cases in the community has also increased from none in the week before, to four cases in the past week.
With seven cases discharged yesterday, 59,834 patients have fully recovered from the disease.
A total of 18 patients remain in hospital, including one in critical condition in the intensive care unit, while 83 are recuperating in community facilities.
Singapore has had 29 deaths from Covid-19 complications, while 15 who tested positive have died of other causes.
