Two octogenarian women succumb, Vietnam Covid-19 death rises to five

"Patient 524" was a 86-year-old woman from the central province of Quang Nam that neighbors Da Nang. From July 11-16, she was treated at the Da Nang Dermatological Hospital before being transferred to the Da Nang Hospital on July 16.

On July 18, she had a fever and was transferred to the Binh An General Hospital and then the Quang Nam Regional Hospital on July 27. She was then transferred to the Hue Central Hospital in the neighboring Thua Thien-Hue Province on July 31, her body already weakened. She was confirmed positive for the novel coronavirus the same day.

At around 6 p.m. Saturday, she fell into a coma and her cardiovascular and respiratory system ceased to function at midnight. She was pronounced dead at around 5:30 a.m. Sunday.

Causes of death included septic shock, acute respiratory failure, multiple organ failure and Covid-19, said deputy health minister Nguyen Truong Son. She had had several underlying conditions, including heart and kidney failure, Son added.

"Patient 475" was an 83-year-old woman with osteoarthritis from Da Nang City who was treated at the Da Nang Hospital since July 12. She'd been confined to her bed for the last six years and had a stomach surgery. She had diarrhea and stomachache on July 12, before developing a fever on July 17.

On July 30, she tested positive for the novel coronavirus and was quarantined. She became severely weak and fell into a coma at around 4:45 a.m. Sunday. She was pronounced dead at around 5:45 a.m. Causes of death included acute coronary syndrome, cholecystitis, osteoarthritis, hypertension and Covid-19.

The previous three Covid-19 deaths were to two men aged 70 and 61, and a 68-year-old woman in Da Nang. All of them had several underlying conditions prior to their deaths, including hypertension, diabetes, leukemia and kidney failure.

There are at least 16 other severely ill Covid-19 cases associated with Da Nang, all elderly people with several underlying conditions, according to the Ministry of Health.

Since the disease resurfaced among the community Saturday last week, Da Nang has recorded 104 cases, becoming the pandemic’s latest epicenter in Vietnam. Quang Nam has reported 26 cases, HCMC eight, Hanoi and Quang Ngai, two each, and Thai Binh and Dak Lak one each, all linked to Da Nang.

Vietnam has recorded 590 cases so far, 212 of them active. Over 94,000 people are in quarantine.