COVID-19 Patient No. 38 Dies at Kyungpook National University Hospital... Fifth Confirmed Death (Update)

Kyungpook National University Hospital Emergency Room Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] The fifth domestic death among confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) has been reported. The deceased is a woman in her 60s who was hospitalized and receiving treatment at Kyungpook National University Hospital in Daegu.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters under the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced on the 23rd that the 38th confirmed domestic case (born in 1963, female) died in the afternoon while hospitalized at Kyungpook National University Hospital.

The headquarters added, "This patient had an underlying condition (chronic renal failure) and was using ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) during hospitalization." ECMO is a device that oxygenates blood outside the body and returns it to patients with severe heart or lung dysfunction who have difficulty breathing.

The patient tested positive for COVID-19 on the 18th. The health authorities are investigating the cause of death and its relation to COVID-19. The total number of deaths among confirmed domestic cases has increased to five, including this woman. This is the first death reported in Daegu.

Previously, three patients who tested positive for COVID-19 while hospitalized at Daenam Hospital in Cheongdo, Gyeongbuk, died, and a man in his 40s (born in 1979) who was found dead at his home in Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk, last night was confirmed posthumously as COVID-19 positive, thus counted as a confirmed death. The health authorities are also investigating the connection between previous deaths and COVID-19.