The patient is an asymptomatic case.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia's first patient of the local transmission of the Omicron variant did not exhibit any symptoms of illness, an official of the Health Ministry stated.

"The patient is an asymptomatic case. We have not found any symptoms at all to this day," the ministry's Director of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Siti Nadia Tarmizi noted in a virtual press conference on Tuesday.

Tarmizi spoke of the ministry having monitored the condition of the 37-year-old man, who had contracted the Omicron variant of COVID-19 based on the results of the antigen test and RT-PCR test on December 20.

"There are no specific symptoms. This person is asymptomatic," she stated.

According to Tarmizi, the patient is currently under quarantine at the Sulianto Saroso Infectious Disease Hospital (RSPI) in Jakarta.

"We want to ensure to minimize the likelihood of transmission. The facilities at the Sulianti Saroso Hospital are much better than those at the isolation centers. At the same time, we study the clinical pattern of the local transmission of Omicron," she noted.

Tarmizi added that the patient had no history of overseas travel or contact with foreign travelers, but he was recorded as having traveled from Medan in North Sumatra to Jakarta.

Related news: First local transmission of Omicron confirmed in Indonesia

The local transmission case has brought the total Omicron variant case count to 47.

The first appearance of the Omicron variant in Indonesia was confirmed on December 16, 2021, involving a janitor of the Wisma Atlet COVID-19 emergency hospital in Kemayoran, Jakarta.

Indonesia that announced its first COVID-19 cases in March 2020 began its vaccination program on January 13, 2021, with President Joko Widodo as the first recipient.

The government is targeting to vaccinate 208,265,720 people in Indonesia in an effort to build herd immunity.

As of Dec 2021, at least 108,412,315 Indonesians, or 40.12 percent of the country’s population, or 52 percent of the target, had been fully vaccinated, while 154,593,449,149 million people, or 75 percent of the targeted recipients, had received their first vaccine dose.

Over 1.2 million healthcare workers had received the vaccine booster.

Related news: Omicron: Minister calls for stricter enforcement of testing, tracing

Translator: Andi Firdaus, Sri Haryati
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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