Unvaccinated Belgian woman contracted two COVID variants simultaneously

FILE PHOTO: An employee at an elderly residence checks a person for coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as tests are performed among seniors in the country, in Brussels, Belgium, April 16, 2020. REUTERS/Yves Herman

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A 90-year-old Belgian woman who died from COVID-19 in March had contracted two variants of coronavirus at the same time, which is believed to be the first documented case of its kind, a scientific congress and Belgian media said on Sunday.

The case, discussed at this year's European Congress on Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID), shows that it is possible to catch two COVID-19 variants simultaneously, the society that organised the congress said in a statement.