Focus Taiwan
Date: 04/06/2020
By: Chen Wei-ting, Hsu Chih-wei and Elizabeth Hsu

Taipei, March 6 (CNA) An expert with Taiwan's Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) has confirmed recent studies saying that the new coronavirus could cause diarrhea, but he stressed that those who have diarrhea are not necessarily infected with the disease.

Taiwan saw an increase in the number of confirmed cases with diarrhea over the past week, leading health authorities to include the symptom in the definition of COVID-19 infection in addition to fever, coughing and the loss of the senses of taste and smell.

At the CECC's daily press briefing Monday, CECC advisor Chang Shan-chwen (張上淳) said that after observing the conditions of COVID-19 patients who had diarrhea, he found some patients suffered up to eight runs a day while others just had loose bowels.

"Diarrhea is a common physiological phenomenon," Chang said, noting that diarrhea could be caused by norovirus or food poisoning.    [FULL  STORY]