China on April 8 issued a circular calling for intensified detection and prompt responses to people infected with the novel coronavirus but who show no symptoms.

Zeng Guang, a member of the National Health Commission's senior-level expert panel and chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, recently received an interview with People’s Daily Online, in which he addressed the most pressing questions surrounding asymptomatic infections.

Zeng noted that asymptomatic infections had already been brought under effective management by the third edition of the Protocol for Prevention and Control of COVID-19, and this circular further tightens control over this group.

“Asymptomatic cases have always existed, and management of this group has become our priority in epidemic prevention and control as the general situation evolves,” he noted.

The circular divided asymptomatic infections into two categories. The first one includes those who do not develop any symptoms after 14 days of quarantine, and the second is the group which is only asymptomatic during the incubation period.

According to the circular, asymptomatic carriers are still infectious and pose a risk of spreading the virus to others. However, they are less infectious than those with symptoms, Zeng said.

Responding to concerns that the coronavirus will be transmitted by carriers in Wuhan after the city ended its lockdown, Zeng told People’s Daily Online that he sees very little possibility of this happening, and people should not be worried about this.

However, he said this possibility cannot be totally ignored, as knowledge of this virus is still lacking, and people should be prepared for special occurrences. Further research and observation is required to find out if asymptomatic carriers will bring a resurgence of the pandemic and how long that might last, he added.

He stressed that the stricter management over the asymptomatic group indicates the attention the government is paying to the issue, and that there is no need to panic.

Zeng reminded people to remain cautious and maintain healthy habits developed during the pandemic, such as frequent hand-washing, wearing masks, social distancing, maintaining good indoor ventilation, and avoiding congregating.