KUALA LUMPUR, May 28 — Jackie Wong took to Facebook today to share his 73-day ordeal in isolation at Sibu Hospital after his first Covid-19 positive result almost three months ago.
But what his experience really highlights is the different results thrown up by swab tests and blood tests and how the medical world is still learning about this new virus on the fly.
Currently, there are two main types of Covid-19 tests. Swab tests, which usually take a sample from the throat or nose, to detect viral RNA. These determine if you currently have Covid-19.
Blood tests, on the other hand, detect antibodies, and can determine if you have had Covid-19, and are therefore immune.
In a video posted on his Facebook page today, the national hammer throw record holder revealed how he had undergone multiple swab tests and four had come back negative towards the end of his hospital stay.
Despite this, his blood tests continued to give positive results, likely due to the dead virus still being in his body.
“In total, I tested negative four times. Even yesterday, before I was discharged, the doctor asked me to do a blood test and those results came back positive. It was explained to me that this is due to ‘fermentation of the virus’.
“If you look at my discharge papers here, it says, ‘Due to dynamics of virus no longer infectious to others’ — which means I can’t infect anyone.
“Basically, the dead virus in my body still pops up in the results,” Wong said.
Wong was finally discharged yesterday under the Health Ministry’s new protocol based on World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations.
Under this new set of rules, Covid-19 patients are allowed to return home after 14 days of treatment and no deterioration of health, as they are considered non-infectious.
WHO said the reason the results still come back as positive is because the dead virus lingers in the body and will be detected by the tests, as mentioned by Wong.
Wong was the first national athlete to be infected with Covid-19. He contracted it from his father, Sarikei MP Wong Ling Biu, and was admitted to Sibu Hospital on March 16 at 1am.
His father is expected to be discharged next week.
In the seven-minute video, Wong also shared how, as a Christian, he prayed a lot during his hospital stay.
He also thanked everyone for their well wishes during his time away and apologised for not returning anyone’s calls or messages because he was advised by doctors to focus on his recovery.
He shared his daily schedule as well.
His day would start with breakfast, followed by Bible study. He would then watch videos of his old throws as well as those of his opponents to keep his muscle memory intact.
He also watched movies or read a book till lunch. After that, he would take a nap and, in the evening, he would train, aided by his coach Gu Yuan, through video calls, and would do this for two hours a day, every day.
“Throughout this time, I never stopped training. I wanted to prove there would be no side effects from this and it would not influence my life moving forward.
“I know it will take time to rediscover the form I had from before. But I am confident, with training, I will be successful again in my sport,” said Wong who holds the national record at 68.22m and has broken the national record 17 times in seven years.
The 28-year-old also won three consecutive bronze medals in the SEA Games from 2011 until 2015, before clinching the gold in the 2017 edition in Malaysia.
However, at the Philippines SEA Games last year, he had to be content with just a silver.
At the Asian level, Wong finished seventh in the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia with a throw of 65.92m and eighth in the 2017 and 2019 Asian Athletics Championships.
In parting, he thanked all the frontliners for their help and advised Malaysians to adhere to the government’s standard operating procedure (SOP) whenever they have to go out.
“A big thank-you to all those fighting this pandemic. Without your help I would not have recovered.
“As for my fellow Malaysians, please follow the SOPs in place and keep each other safe.”
