Blood test results of the first four boys of the Moo Paa (Wild Boars) Academy football team rescued from Tham Luang cave in Chiang Rai have shown no signs of infectious diseases they might have contracted during their ordeal, doctors say.
Currently, the 12 footballers, aged 11-16 and their 25-year-old football coach Ekkapol Chanthawong are under medical care at Chiangrai Prachanukroh Hospital in Muang district.
All were in good spirits, permanent secretary for public health Jessada Chokdamrongsuk said in a briefing yesterday.
Blood results of the remaining eight boys and the coach are due in the next few days, he said.
However, the 13 will not be discharged until doctors are confident of a full recovery. They must still complete a seven-day course of antibiotic treatment, particularly three of the boys who were diagnosed with lung inflammations, Dr Jessada said.
They were still weak after being stuck so long in the damp cave without food. If they are discharged too soon, they may be at risk of contracting other diseases, he added.
Of the last group brought out from the cave on Tuesday, three were being treated for ringing in the ears, or otitis media (middle-ear inflammation) which was brought on by mild fever. They should recover in the next few days, Dr Jessada said.
Navy Seal members who stayed with the boys in the cave were in good health and they were recuperating at hospitals near their homes. Samples of their blood were also taken and sent for lab tests, he said.
Twelve boys and the coach entered Tham Luang cave on June 23 and were trapped inside by rising floodwater. The international rescue operation finally brought them out of the cave, with the first group emerging on Sunday and the last on Tuesday.
One of foreign divers who helped the 13 people trapped inside the flooded cave was Australian anaesthetist and undercave water explorer Richard "Harry" Harris.
Dr Harris was quoted by The Herald Sun newspaper in Australia yesterday.
The doctor has been hailed a "hero of the Thai people" and an "extraordinary Australian" for his pivotal role in the dangerous rescue mission. He gave a message of thanks for the support that had been pouring in since the final boys were brought to safety on Tuesday night.
In a statement with his dive partner, West Australian vet Craig Challen, Dr Harris said: "The favourable outcome that has been achieved is almost beyond our imagination when we first became involved in this operation."
Nitinai Sirismatthakarn, president of Airports of Thailand Plc (AoT), said yesterday AoT will give 4 million baht in compensation to the family of former Navy Seal Saman Gunan, who died from a lack of oxygen on July 6 during the rescue mission.
Petty Officer 1st Class Saman worked with AoT overseeing security-related jobs at Suvarnabhumi airport for 12 years after he left the navy.
Weenas Srisuk, director of the Bureau of Registration Administration under the Interior Ministry, said authorities would consider legal channels to grant Thai citizenship to three stateless members of the football team -- the coach and two boys.
