A 41-year-old man died from complications due to Covid-19 more than two weeks after being discharged, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said on Saturday (June 6). The case is Singapore's youngest Covid-19 casualty.
The Chinese national, identified as case 11714, died on Thursday (June 4) and is the 25th person in Singapore to die from complications due to Covid-19.
According to MOH, the man had recovered from the infection and was discharged on May 17. He collapsed on June 4 and the coroner has certified that the cause of death was massive pulmonary thromboembolism following SARS-CoV-2 infection. SARS-CoV-2 is the strain of coronavirus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
Mayo Clinic defines pulmonary embolism as a blockage in one of the pulmonary arteries in your lungs. In most cases, pulmonary embolism is caused by blood clots that travel to the lungs from deep veins in the legs or, rarely, from veins in other parts of the body (deep vein thrombosis).
No other information was provided about the case.
In a written reply to Non-Constituency Member of Parliament Leon Perera's question on patients with Covid-19 experiencing above-average rates of blood clots and heart disease, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said the ministry has issued an advisory to all doctors on May 20 to highlight the emerging data on these risks.
Mr Gan said doctors have been advised to be "watchful" for cardiovascular symptoms in Covid-19 patients, and to provide guidance on the evaluation and management of such patients.
About 1 in 1000 experienced cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and blood clots so far, Mr Gan said.
Citing international data, Mr Gan added that Covid-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit are at higher risk, "as they are immobile for prolonged periods and may have multiple co-morbidities."
Doctors here should take "take extra precautions such as monitoring [the propensity for the blood to clot] closely," he said.
In some cases, anticoagulants or blood thinners are used to prevent blood clot formation. "However, use of anti-coagulants must be weighed against the risk of bleeding, and our doctors will decide on a case by case basis," Mr Gan added.
"As Covid-19 is a new disease, we are learning more about it as we go along. MOH will continue to monitor the emerging evidence, and work with our clinical experts to ensure the best possible care and outcomes for our Covid-19 patients" Mr Gan concluded.
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This article was first published in theAsianparent.
