92-year-old woman beats coronavirus in Turkey

IZMIR

A 92-year-old woman suffering from the novel coronavirus was successfully treated and got discharged from a hospital with health staff giving her applaud.

Mukaddes Adiyaman appealed to the Izmir Egepol Hospital on April 14 with symptoms such as fever and persistent cough, and was diagnosed with COVID-19.

Following an intense treatment process, Adiyaman was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday.

She said the diagnosis of the virus was a source of panic for her in the beginning, but she was relieved when the health staff meticulously took care of her.

Dr. Hasan Murat Celik, the chief doctor of the hospital, said all public and state hospitals in Turkey joined forces in an effort to battle the virus, adding the country has so far been dealing with the pandemic effectively.

“We see the number of our cases and fatality ratio are in decline,” Celik said, noting that the medical equipment and manpower in the country were capable of surviving this period.

As of late Tuesday, Turkey reported a total of 129,491 coronavirus cases and 73,285 of them have fully recovered. The country's death toll stands at 3,520.

After originating in China last December, COVID-19 has spread to at least 187 countries and regions. Europe and the US are currently the worst-hit regions.

The pandemic has killed over 257,400 worldwide, with total infections nearly 3.68 million, while recoveries surpassed 1.2 million, according to figures compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University.

* Writing by Ali Murat Alhas in Ankara.