South Korean health authorities said Thursday that they have confirmed the first case of potentially deadly Japanese encephalitis in the country this year.
The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said a 71-year-old woman living in Gangwon Province, east of Seoul, has been diagnosed with the mosquito-borne virus.
It said the patient started to exhibit initial symptoms like fever, vomiting and diarrhea on Aug. 11 and was admitted to a regional hospital after she began to lose consciousness.
"Detailed blood test results that came out Wednesday confirmed she was suffering from Japanese encephalitis," the KCDC said.a
The disease control center had issued nationwide warnings on April 13, upgraded to an alert on July 30, after the red house mosquitoes that transmit the disease were found in some parts of the country.
Domestic pigs and wild birds are thought to be directly linked to the disease, which is harmless in almost all cases. However, depending on the health and age of the afflicted individual, the chance of fatality can rise sharply.
In 2009, the government confirmed six cases of the disease, the same number discovered the previous year.
Worldwide, up to 50,000 cases are reported annually in Southeast and Northeast Asia.