Coronavirus: Japanese woman infected for a second time

The woman tested positive after developing symptoms again almost a month after she was first discharged from hospital

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  A tour guide wears a mask, due to the coronavirus, in front of the historical Salwa Palace, in Diriyah, outside Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. AP

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  A woman wearing a face masks walks past Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut, Lebanon. Bloomberg

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  Visitors wearing protective face masks pose for a photograph after visiting Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut, Lebanon. Bloomberg

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  A Tehran Municipality worker cleans a bus to avoid the spread of the illness in Iran. AFP

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  Workers disinfect subway trains against coronavirus in Tehran, Iran, in the early morning AP

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  Members of an Iraqi family, all wearing masks, pose for a picture during their visit to the shrine of Imam Ali in the holy Iraqi central city of Najaf. AFP

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  An Iraqi man checks a protective mask at a pharmacy in the holy Iraqi city of Najaf. AFP

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  An Iraqi student shows an anti-government demonstrator how to wear a protective mask during a rally in the southern Iraqi city of Basra. AFP

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  An anti-government demonstrator adjusts a protective mask on a child's face in Basra, Iraq. AFP

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  Kuwaiti children use protective masks as they play with a water gun on the country's national day an day in the country's capital. EPA

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  Kuwaiti children use protective masks as they play with water balloons during celebrations of the country's national day in the country's capital. EPA

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  Police officers wearing protective face masks walk with horses on their way to visit residents who live in remote areas in Altay, China. AFP

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  Emergency forces install an air dome equipped with medical supplies at Spallanzani hospital in case the number of people suffering from coronavirus increases, Rome, Italy. EPA

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  Emergency forces install an air dome equipped with medical supplies at Spallanzani hospital in case the number of people suffering from coronavirus increases, in Rome, Italy. EPA

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  Pedestrians wearing protective face masks walk past shops in Milan, Italy. Bloomberg

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  Workers spray disinfectant as a precaution against covid-19 at Saemaeul traditional market in Seoul, South Korea. EPA

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  A worker wearing protective gear sprays disinfectant as part of preventative measures against the spread of covid-19 at a railway station in Daegu, South Korea. AFP

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  Pakistani soldiers wear facemasks patrol near the closed Pakistan-Iran border in Taftan as fears over the spread of covid-19 escalate. AFP

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A woman working as a tour bus guide in Japan has tested positive for the new coronavirus for a second time, Osaka's prefectural government said.

It is the first known reinfection of Covid-19 in Japan, however, second positive tests have been reported in China, where the outbreak started in late December.

The woman, a resident of Osaka, in western Japan, tested positive on Wednesday after developing a sore throat and chest pains, according to a statement, describing her as being in her forties.

Once you have the infection, it could remain dormant and then you can get an exacerbation if it finds its way into the lungs

She first tested positive in late January and was discharged from hospital after recovering on February 1.

Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said in parliament the central government would need to review patient lists and keep tabs on the condition of those previously discharged, as health experts analysed the implications of testing positive for the virus after an initial recovery.

"Once you have the infection, it could remain dormant and with minimal symptoms, and then you can get an exacerbation if it finds its way into the lungs," said Philip Tierno Jr., Professor of Microbiology and Pathology at NYU School of Medicine.

Tierno said much remains unknown about the virus. "I'm not certain that this is not bi-phasic, like anthrax," he said, meaning the disease appears to go away before recurring.

Asked to comment on prospects for the Olympic Games going ahead in Tokyo this summer, Tierno said, "The Olympics should be postponed if this continues ... There are many people who don't understand how easy it is to spread this infection from one person to another."

Japan has changed its strategy in combating the contagion, seeking to slow its spread and minimise the number of deaths.

Around the world, health experts say more than 82,000 people have now been infected with the virus.

Of those, 32,878 have fully recovered while there have been 2,804 deaths. More than 46,000 people remain infected.

China remains the worst affected country overall, with almost 78,500 cases and 2,747 deaths.

However, new infections are soaring elsewhere, including in South Korea, which had 1,595 cases on Thursday, an increase of 334 in one day.

Cases are also growing in Japan, where there were 186 confirmed infections on Thursday, compared to 170 the day before.

Tokyo has said large gatherings and sports events should be scrapped or curtailed for two weeks to contain the virus, while pledging the 2020 Olympic Games will still go ahead in the city in the summer.