87-year-old woman is first coronavirus fatality in Catalonia

An 87-year-old woman with a pre-existing condition has become the first coronavirus fatality in Catalonia, health authorities announced late on Friday evening.

The woman was admitted to the Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital in Badalona, just north of Barcelona, on Thursday, in a serious condition, with severe respiratory problems and a fever. Tests confirmed she had Covid-19.

The woman died at 3.15pm on Friday afternoon, the eighth coronavirus fatality recorded in Spain.

She hadn’t traveled to places of high-risk; authorities are now investigating where she could have contracted the disease.

At a press conference on Friday evening, health secretary Joan Guix expressed his condolences to the victim’s family.

Guix added that "in the past number of hours," there were nine new positive cases of coronavirus in Catalonia.

In total, there are currently 46 cases, two of which involve patients in a serious condition.

Pre-existing conditions

The head of emergency services at Germans Trias i Pujol Hospital, ​​Dr. Anna Carreras, said that the woman arrived at the emergency room on Thursday at about 10am.

She had several pre-existing conditions. A scan showed that she was suffering from pneumonia and she was tested for severe respiratory problems, including coronavirus. Carreras said that she was diagnosed with the disease less than four hours later.

The patient entered an isolation unit, was given assisted ventilation – no invasive procedures, in agreement with the family – and was treated with antiretrovirals and interferons, the drugs that are being used for coronavirus. Despite the treatment, she died at 3.15pm on Friday.