RT-PCR was performed retrospectively on the stored respiratory sample [from December 2019] and confirmed the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Based on this result, it appears that the COVID-19 epidemic started much earlier in France.
Here we report a case of a patient hospitalised in December 2019 in an intensive care unit in a hospital in the north of Paris for haemoptysis with no aetiological diagnosis. RT-PCR was performed retrospectively on the stored respiratory sample and confirmed the diagnosis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Based on this result, it appears that the COVID-19 epidemic started much earlier in France.
