Report on asymptomatic spread of coronavirus based on faulty information, health officials say

As experts race to understand how the new coronavirus is transmitted among people, health officials say that a recent study outlining asymptomatic spread of the virus was based on faulty information. Scientists reported last week in NEJM that a woman from China had infected colleagues during a business trip to Germany, and that she wasn’t showing symptoms. However, German public health officials now say the woman was experiencing mild symptoms and that she had been taking fever-suppressing medication at the time of her trip. The new revelation, first reported by ScienceInsider, does not rule out the possibility of asymptomatic transmission in the current outbreak, but this was the only case that had been reported. NEJM said it is looking into the case more closely. As of this morning, the outbreak has sickened more than 24,500 people, and 492 people have died.