Japan’s Health Ministry announced on Sunday that they have detected a new COVID-19 variant among four people.
The patients range from teens to their 40s, according to the Ministry.
Although the new variant currently under in depth study has similarities with those that originated from Britain and Africa, the new COVID-19 variant in Japan reportedly does not appear to have been spotted before.
The patients, who all arrived at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport last January 2, tested positive for COVID-19 at the airport’s screening center.
The National Institute of Infectious Diseases, the government agency that analyzed the patients’ samples, said it is difficult to determine the new variant’s transmissibility at present.
However, they have monitored that three of the cases had shown difficulty in breathing, fever and sore throat.
