KUALA LUMPUR (June 29): Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah said one of two Cambodian men who were found positive upon arrival in Cambodia from Malaysia recently, is a former patient who has been treated and cleared for discharge in Malaysia.
“One of the individuals is an old case in Malaysia, which was patient no. 1,051. So, even though both of them have been tested positive, it (one of them) might be virus shedding, so it is not much of a concern.
“The patient had been discharged but the virus could still be detected through a RT-PCR (reverse transmission-polymerase chain reaction) test. However, the virus detected is a dead virus,” Noor Hisham explained during his Covid-19 media briefing today.
The other confirmed infection is a 15-year-old student who studied at a tahfiz school in Malaysia, he said.
“We have received information regarding this matter from the Cambodia’s Health Ministry and will do contact tracing for those who have been exposed to the two Cambodians.
“We will collaborate with airlines to detect the individuals, especially those who were seated in front of or behind the Cambodians while on the flight,” Noor Hisham said.
On June 28, Cambodia’s Health Ministry reported two new imported cases of those who have returned from Malaysia, according to a report from Khmer Times, a Cambodian online news portal.
Both flew from Malaysia on a direct flight and arrived in Phnom Penh on Friday, June 26.
The two are now warded at the Chak Angre Krom Health Centre in the capital.