Possible coronavirus case in New Jersey tests negative

For the second time in a week, a possible case of coronavirus in New Jersey has been ruled out.

At least 4,500 people have been infected worldwide with the virus, which first appeared in the Chinese industrial city of Wuhan in the central part of the country.

Officials in China on Tuesday put the number of deaths at 106, up from 26 last week. The new total includes the first death in Beijing and 24 more in Hubei province, where the outbreak has been centered.

New Jersey Department of Health spokeswoman Nicole Kirgan said a CDC test came back negative and no other cases are under investigation in New Jersey. Kirgan did not specify the medical facility where the virus was initially suspected.

The CDC says it has 72 cases pending testing nationwide.

The Hackensack University Medical Center on Thursday examined a woman Thursday for a possible case of coronavirus, but determined her case didn't meet the criteria for a CDC test after consulting with the CDC and the state Department of Health, according to hospital spokeswoman Nancy Radwin.

The state on Friday issued medical facilities guidelines on responding to potential cases, including sending samples to the CDC lab in Atlanta, which is currently the only facility in the country equipped to test for coronavirus.

There are five confirmed cases of the virus in the United States — in Arizona, California, Illinois, and Washington state.

State Health Commissioner Judith M. Persichilli said patients with confirmed nCoV infection have reportedly had mild to severe respiratory illness with symptoms of fever, cough and shortness of breath. Persichilli said the CDC believes at this time that symptoms of nCoV may appear in as few as two days or as long as two weeks after exposure.

Initial symptoms of the virus can mirror those of the cold and flu, including cough, fever, chest tightening, and shortness of breath, but can worsen to pneumonia. The coronavirus family includes the common cold as well as viruses that cause more serious illnesses, such as SARS and Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome, or MERS, which is thought to have originated from camels.

Kean University said in an email to students it will not be sending U.S. students to its Wenzhou-Kean University campus which is located 700 miles from Wuhan. Students from WKU who arrived at the Union campus last weekend are meeting with Student Health Services to address any health concerns, according to the school.

"None is suspected of suffering from the coronavirus," the school said in a statement. There are also no suspected case at any Kean campus in the U.S. or China.

Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNJ.

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that the patient brought to Hackensack Medical Center tested negative for coronavirus. That patient was not tested.

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