Bedford Resident Screened For Coronavirus

BEDFORD, MA — A Bedford man is being closely monitored for symptoms of the new Coronavirus after he was in close contacted with someone who tested positive for the virus. The man was tested for the virus and is waiting for the results — he and his immediate family are in home quarantine.

The person who tested positive attended the Biogen conference in Boston that resulted in several Bay State residents contracting COVID-19. Three of the roughly 175 people who attended the meeting at the Boston Marriott tested positive at state labs for coronavirus, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said on Friday.

As of Sunday, the number of cases of the virus in Massachusetts was 28 with one confirmed case. A UMass-Boston student remains the only case confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. COVID-19 has been identified by the state in the 12 other cases and are awaiting CDC confirmation.

The other presumptive positive cases in the state have been traced to international travel, health officials said Friday.

"Should conditions change and the test results indicate that the Bedford resident is presumptively positive for COVID-19, the BOH and Town officials will work with State officials to communicate with anyone who may have had close contact with this resident to reduce any spread of illness," the town said in a statement.

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Coronaviruses are a family of viruses that include the common cold as well as much more serious diseases. The strain that emerged in China in late 2019, now called COVID-19, is related to others that have caused serious outbreaks in recent years, including severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). The first confirmed case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was on Jan. 21.

The disease, which apparently originated in animals, is now transferring from person to person, although the mechanism is not yet fully understood. Its symptoms include fever, coughing and shortness of breath, and many patients develop pneumonia. There is as yet no vaccine against COVID-19 it and no antiviral treatment.

According to the CDC, the best way of preventing the disease is to avoid close contact with people who are sick, to avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands, to wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, and to use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol if soap and water are not available.

To avoid spreading any respiratory illness, the CDC recommends staying at home when you are sick, covering your cough or sneeze with a tissue and throwing the tissue in the trash, cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched objects and surfaces.