Infected at a music event in Chiba? "I take it lightly because I am young": An infected person testified

Recently Yomiuri Shimbun reported the following:

千葉の音楽イベントで感染か「若いので大丈夫、甘く見ていた」…感染者が証言

 読売新聞 2020/04/10 09:10

　新型コロナウイルスの感染は、若者世代にも広がっている。東京都が外出自粛の要請を出していた３月末の週末、クラブに遊びに行き、後に感染が判明した神奈川県内の男性会社員（３５）は「ウイルスを甘く見ていた」と後悔の思いを口にした。（畑武尊）

　３月２８日土曜日の深夜。一人暮らしの男性は、千葉市内で開かれたクラブの音楽イベントに参加し、徹夜で踊り明かした。以前から楽しみにしていたイベント。３０～４０人が集まったが、「密集」「密閉」「密接」の「３密」がそろった空間だった。千葉県は「都内への外出自粛」を呼びかけており、「東京ではなく千葉なので問題ないだろう」との軽い気持ちだった。

　体調に異変があったのは３０日。頭痛と倦怠（けんたい）感を覚えた。翌３１日、出社後に体温を測ると３７・５度。早退したが、市販薬で頭痛を抑えられたので仕事は続けた。

　４月３日朝、自宅でオレンジジュースを飲むと、氷で薄まったような味だった。「おかしい。ひょっとすると」。その日も仕事には行ったが、翌４日に容体は急変した。悪寒とめまいを覚え、大量に汗をかいた。はうようにしてトイレに行った後、１１９番で救急車を呼び、入院先の病院でウイルス検査を受けた。

　感染が確認されたのは６日。感染者を集めた４人部屋で過ごし、８日時点では痰（たん）が出ることを除き容体は安定している。新型コロナウイルスの治療薬として期待されている新型インフルエンザ治療薬「アビガン」も服用している。

　厚生労働省の７日時点の集計によると、国内で感染が確認された約４２００人のうち、４０歳未満は３４％を占める。クラブで感染したのかはっきりしないが、男性はここで感染した可能性があると思っている。「まだ若いので、感染しても大丈夫という慢心があった。クラブなどに遊びにいくと、自分のように苦しむことになる」と悔いた。

Translation

The new coronavirus infection had spread to the younger generation. On a weekend at the end of March when Tokyo requested people to refrain from going out, a male employee in Kanagawa prefecture (35) went to the club to look for fun, and was confirmed infected after that. He talked about regret for "taking the virus lightly". (Takeshi Hata)

It was midnight on Saturday, March 28th. A man living alone participated in a club music event held in Chiba and revealed that he had danced all night. It was an event that he had been looking forward to for a long time. 30-40 people gathered in a space with “three tights” environment: tight crowding, tight closure, and tight contact. Chiba Prefecture had been calling for "restraint from going out to Tokyo", but he took it lightly as "it would have no problem because it's Chiba, and Tokyo."

His physical condition changed on the 30th. Headache and tiredness were felt. The next day, the 31^st, after coming to office his body temperature was 37.5 degrees. He left early, continued to work because he was able to control his headache with over-the-counter drugs.

On April 3 in the morning when he drank orange juice at home, it tasted like that it had been diluted with ice. "Funny. Perhaps." He went to work on that day as well, but on the following day the 4th his condition suddenly changed. He felt chills and dizziness and sweated a lot. After going to the bathroom in a crawling manner, he called 119 for an ambulance and was examined for virus infection at the hospital where he was admitted.

Infection was confirmed on the 6th. He spent time in a room for four where infected people were assembled, and as of the 8th his condition was stable except that sputum appeared. He was also taking the new influenza drug "Abigan", which was expected to be a new coronavirus treatment.

 According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare data as of the 7th, out of the approximately 4,200 confirmed domestic infections, 34% were under 40 years old. It was unclear if he was infected in the club, but this man thought he might have been infected there. He regretted that "I was over confident that even if I might be infected, it would be fine because I was still young. When you go to clubs to look for fun, you will suffer like me".

              So, age will not necessarily be a factor to immune young people from being infected by the new virus, or to lessen the discomforts brought along by such an infection.