A 42-year-old woman died from COVID-19 Saturday, marking the city’s youngest death of a patient who was otherwise healthy.
The woman developed symptoms on Dec. 4 and was admitted to Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit two days later, according to the Hospital Authority. At the time, she had a fever, cough and shortness of breath. She subsequently tested positive for COVID-19.
Throughout her hospitalization, the patient required mechanical ventilation for breathing assistance.
She died on Saturday night, six days after she was admitted.
Authorities have warned of a worrying trend of younger patients contracting serious cases of COVID-19 compared to the virus’ previous waves in the city. More are being listed as critically ill, sparking concern for the health of younger patients who generally are less affected by the disease than those who are older.
The 42-year-old is the third youngest COVID-19 fatality in Hong Kong, following the deaths of a 38-year-old male last month and a 39-year-old male when the outbreak began earlier this year. Both had underlying illnesses.
Sara Ho, a chief manager at the Hospital Authority, said Sunday that those who develop symptoms should visit the doctor as soon as possible. “You never know whether you are the one who will be affected severely by this infection,” she said.
David Hui, an expert in respiratory medicine at Chinese University of Hong Kong cautioned the public not to assume their “infection must be mild” if they are young.
Hong Kong is in the midst of a renewed COVID-19 outbreak, which has already seen daily increases cimb into the triple digits on seven days last month.
While the government has tightened social distancing rules and mandated testing for high-risk groups, the number of daily infections has not fallen significantly.
On Sunday, 95 new cases were reported. Out of them, 92 were locally transmitted, with 41 untraceable cases.
Hong Kong has recorded 7,542 confirmed cases and 117 deaths to date.
