A newborn baby, in London, has become the youngest person to contract the novel coronavirus.

The child's mother was rushed to a hospital days before she gave birth as she was suspected to have pneumonia, which is one of the symptoms of the virus. She has also been tested positive for the virus but the results came in after she had given birth. Authorities are not sure whether the child was infected in the womb or after it was born.

The duo are being treated at separate hospitals with the mother being moved to a special hospital and the child is still at the first hospital.

A baby has tested positive and medical authorities are trying to find out when did it get infected.

A source told The Sun that the medical professionals who came in contact with the pair have been advised to self-isolate themselves in case that they have been infected as well.

In a statement, the hospital said: “Two patients at North Middlesex university hospital have tested positive for coronavirus. One has been transferred to a specialist centre and one is being treated in an isolation room. The safety of our patients and staff is our top priority, so in following guidance from Public Health England, we are regularly deep cleaning the areas where the patients are cared for and staff who were in close contact with these patients were advised to self-isolate.”

Meanwhile, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has advised that healthy babies should not be separated from infected mums and they can be breastfed since there is no evidence that the virus can be transferred via breast milk.