PANAMA CITY (REUTERS) - A 40-year-old woman in Panama has tested positive for coronavirus, the country's health minister said on Monday (March 9), marking the first such case in the Central American nation.

The unnamed woman had travelled from Spain and upon arriving to Panama on Monday sought hospital care for fever and a cough, Health Minister Rosario Turner told reporters, adding that the government wanted to be transparent about the case.

The woman, whose nationality was not disclosed and is believed to have a relatively minor case of the illness, has since been sent home in stable condition, the minister added.

"She has what we could describe as a minor case of coronavirus," said Dr Turner.