BEIJING, March 20 (Xinhua) -- No novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases that are transmitted by patients tested positive again after being treated have been reported so far in China, a medical expert said Friday.

A staff member conducts nucleic acid tests at a laboratory in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, Feb. 13, 2020. (Photo: Xinhua)

Overall, the proportion of COVID-19 patients who relapsed is small, said Wang Guiqiang, director of the infectious disease department of Peking University First Hospital, at a press conference in Beijing. Wang said determining the final number of such relapse cases would need to wait until the epidemic ends.

Patients should have two negative nucleic acid tests before being discharged, Wang said, adding that they are also required to undergo a 14-day self-quarantine at home to avoid infecting others if they relapse.

Wang stressed the importance of quarantine for recovered patients and urged them to receive treatment as soon as they test positive again and show symptoms.

Apart from providing comprehensive checks to recovered patients before being discharged from hospital, the country has also implemented a plan which requires them to receive subsequent visits in two to four weeks after leaving hospitals, Guo Yanhong, an official with the National Health Commission said at the same press conference.

When being discharged from hospital, information of patients will be forwarded to residential communities where they live and primary-level medical institutions to enable a continuous process of quarantine management, follow-up visits, health monitoring and rehabilitation, Guo said.