In several Hungarian press agencies, information has come to light that I am one of the citizens of Szeged who became ill as a result of a new type of coronavirus infection. The news is true.
I arrived home from the southern part of Tirol on March 8 from a trip that I planned and booked earlier in the year. My arrival back to Szeged was before the official state of emergency was declared in Hungary and also prior to the decision to stand down students from the university and cease of medical treatments. According to my preliminary information, the location of my stay was not one of the areas exposed to the coronavirus. This has been confirmed to me by many trusted sources.
I am a practicing medical doctor with decades of experience, but during my travels, staying, and coming home, I did not see any signs in myself or in my surroundings that could have caused the slightest suspicion of being infected with the virus. It is not even proven that the coronavirus was introduced to my body abroad. There is even a strong possibility that I was infected in Szeged, and as an ear, nose- and throat specialist, I am often exposed to upper respiratory tract infections.
In addition, after my return home, my medical work was conducted under sterile conditions, in accordance with the strictest health protocol - as in all cases before - so it was impossible to expose any patient to infection.
Finally, after noticing the symptoms of the disease, I immediately and responsibly took the necessary precautions. So far, no positive pattern has been found in my immediate environment. Right now, my family and I are in quarantine, I am practically asymptomatic.
Although there are some positive cases in Szeged, but they are completely independent of me, I had no contact with them.
Prof. Dr. László Rovó
Rector of the University of Szeged
