Japan's First COVID-19 Death... 80-Year-Old Woman with No Travel History (Comprehensive)

First Symptoms Detected on January 22... Death After 3 Weeks
Japan Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare "Investigating with Possibility of Domestic Infection in Mind"

[Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] An 80-year-old Japanese woman with no recent travel history has become the first COVID-19 death in Japan.

On the 13th (local time), according to the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Kato Katsunobu, Japan's Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, announced that a woman in her 80s from Kanagawa Prefecture died from COVID-19.

The deceased woman was a Japanese national with no travel history. She first showed symptoms on the 22nd of last month, and her condition worsened significantly by the 25th, three days later. She visited a medical institution on the 28th for examination, but her symptoms continued to deteriorate.

She was diagnosed with pneumonia and hospitalized on the 1st of this month. A virus test was conducted on the 12th, but she ultimately passed away that day. The virus test result was positive.

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare is currently investigating the detailed cause of death, including the causal relationship between the illness and the death.

At a press conference that day, Minister Kato said, "Since the deceased woman had no recent travel history, we will conduct an epidemiological investigation based on the possibility that she was infected domestically."