Medical examiner dies after contracting coronavirus from corpse

BANGKOK — Researchers believe a medical examiner in Thailand is the first person to die from the coronavirus after contracting it from a corpse.

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“This is the first report on COVID-19 infection and death among medical personnel in a Forensic Medicine unit,” researchers wrote in a Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine study released Sunday. “There is low chance of forensic medicine professionals coming into contact with infected patients. But they can have contact with biological samples and corpses.”

The medical examiner has not been identified. There is limited recorded spreading in the community, so officials believe the forensic scientist contracted the virus from a dead body.

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“At present, there is no data on the exact number of COVID-19 contaminated corpses since it is not a routine practice to examine for COVID-19 in dead bodies in Thailand,” researchers wrote.

Researchers said forensic and medical professionals should be wearing personal protective equipment like masks and gloves when they come in contact with a patient, living or dead, infected with the coronavirus.

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There are 2,672 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Thailand, according to Johns Hopkins’ tracking information.