NHS Lothian has confirmed the number of people diagnosed with the potentially deadly coronavirus in the area has risen to 11 – the highest of any area in Scotland.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the increase during a UK-wide Cobra meeting which included Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday.
She said the new cases can all be linked to foreign travel or contact with other known cases.
UK-wide, the number of people diagnosed with COVID-19 has risen to over 370, with 27 of them in Scotland.
The Scottish Government says the country is well prepared to deal with the disease spreading and NHS Lothian says it will continue to utilise its ‘drive-through’ coronavirus testing centre at the Western General in Edinburgh.
It was introduced as NHS Lothian steps up preparations for the spread of the virus.
The service is in addition to existing community-testing service where trained teams test patients in their own home.
Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer Dr Catherine Calderwood said: “With all these cases, our thoughts are with those diagnosed and their families.
“Scotland is well equipped to deal with this kind of infection and we are doing everything we can to contain the virus at this stage and minimise the risk to the public.
“Clinicians are now conducting contact tracing, the process of gathering details of the places those who have tested positive visited
and the people they have been in contact with.
“Close contact involves either face-to-face contact or spending more than 15 minutes within two metres of an infected person. The risk is very low in situations where someone may have passed a patient on the street or in a shop.
“Health protection teams will contact those who are at risk from the current cases – those who are not contacted are not at risk.
“We can all play our part to limit the spread of the virus by washing our hands frequently for 20 seconds as well as always carrying tissues and using them to catch coughs and sneezes, then putting the tissue in a bin, and don’t touch your face.”
Meanwhile, members of the public have been urged not to stockpile after reports of shelves being cleared at stores in West Lothian.
Panic-buying was reported at Tesco in Bathgate when eggs and UHT milk were among products in highest demand. Hand sanitiser gel has also sold out.
And at Sainsbury’s in Linlithgow, supplies of kitchen roll, toilet paper, cleaning products, hand sanitiser and wet wipes were running low.
Typical symptoms of coronavirus include fever, a cough that may progress to a severe pneumonia causing shortness of breath and breathing difficulties.
Generally, it can cause more severe symptoms in people with weakened immune symptoms, older people and those with long-term conditions like diabetes, cancer and chronic lung disease.
Updates on public health advice for coronavirus can be found on the NHS Inform website, and a free helpline has been set up for those who do not have symptoms but are looking for general health advice can call 0800 028 2816.
