Tokyo, Jan 18 (IANS): The number of hospitalised Covid-19 patients with serious symptoms in Japan has topped 970, marking a record high since the onset of the pandemic in the country, authorities said.

Meanwhile, the number of patients recuperating at home reached 30,208 this week, Xinhua news agency quoted the Health Ministry as saying on Sunday.

The number of homebound patients as of January 13 was 1.7 times that of the previous week amid a third wave of the pandemic across the country.

On Sunday, 5,759 new Covid-19 cases and 49 deaths were reported across Japan, which increased the country's overall infection tally and fatalities to 330,683 and 4,304, respectively.

Tokyo confirmed an additional 1,592 infections with five new deaths, the metropolitan government said.

Currently, 19 prefectures have reached the bed occupancy situation at Stage 4, the worst level on the government's four-level scale, up eight from last week.

Tokyo has the highest number of homebound patients of 8,518, up over 3,000 compared to a week earlier.

The situation poses a challenging task to health authorities in terms of keeping a check on homebound patients in case a sudden deterioration in their conditions occurs, according to local media reports.