7-month-old infant cured of novel coronavirus

The youngest novel coronavirus patient in Shanghai, a seven-month-old infant, has been cured and was discharged from hospital on Thursday.

The infant was found to be infected with COVID-19 on Feb 3 at the Children's Hospital of Fudan University, according to Zeng Mei, director of the hospital's infectious disease department. Zeng said that the child likely contracted the disease following a visit by relatives from Wuhan.

"We were a bit worried at first because we didn't have previous clinical cases involving such a young patient," Zeng said.

The hospital then assembled a special team that provided 24-hour care for the infant and used only mild medication to avoid the onset of any side effects. The infant's condition improved after five days.

According to Zeng, the hospital has so far received 10 children infected with the novel coronavirus. Six were cured and none have died due to the infection.