A four-month-old baby who had tested positive for COVID-19, died at Kozhikode Medical College in Kerala on Friday, 24 April, The News Minute reported.
The baby was suffering from congenital heart disease since birth and was admitted to the hospital on 21 April with a history of fever, cough, breathing difficulties, weak lungs and seizure, according to PTI. The infant tested positive for the coronavirus on 22 April and succumbed to a heart attack after two days.
The news was confirmed by the state Health Minister KK Shailaja, who said that the baby’s last rites will be performed as per the COVID-19 protocol. While the source of the infection has not yet been traced, the minister said there could have been indirect contacts with patients. A relative of the baby has also tested positive, while the results for the parents are expected to be released sometime today.
The child hailed from Manjeri in Malappuram district.
Kerala reported its first death on 28 March in the Ernakulam district of a 69-year-old who had traveled to Dubai. A second death was reported on 31 March in Thiruvanan, of a 68-year-old man with no travel history, who had high blood pressure and multiple ailments.
The fourth-month old child’s death is not the first in the country. Earlier, a one-and-a-half month infant had died in Delhi, a 45-day-old baby in Telangana and a 14-month-old in Gujarat. A six-month-old baby tested positive in Punjab on Tuesday, 21 April.
(With inputs from The New Indian Express and PTI)
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