According to a new study, which studied the link between common patient characteristics and the threat of dying from the COVID-19 infection, men are susceptible to a 30% higher risk of dying from the killer virus in comparison to women of the same age and health status. Coronavirus patients who are admitted in the hospital are at a greater risk of dying if they are men or if they are obese or have complications from diabetes or hypertension, the study, published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, observed.
The scientists from the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) in the United States evaluated the condition of nearly 67,000 hospitalised Coronavirus patients in 613 hospitals across the country in the research, as per the news agency PTI. They said the patients who were obese, had hypertension or poorly managed diabetes are placed in the bracket of higher danger with death compared to those who did not have these conditions.
The study also reported that COVID-19 patients aged 20 to 39 with these conditions had the biggest disadvantage in relation to the risk of dying compared to their healthier peers. The researchers believe healthcare providers could consider these risks when deciding which COVID-19 patients could profit the most from antibody therapies that, if given in the first few days of the infection, can pull down hospitalisation risk.
According to the study, age stays the strongest forecaster of mortality from COVID-19. The study also reported that overall, nearly 19% of hospitalised COVID-19 patients passed away from the disease with the lowest mortality among pediatric patients, which was less than 2%.
Mortality rates escalated with each decade of life with the highest mortality, 34%, among those aged 80 and older. “Older patients still have the highest risk of dying, but younger patients with obesity or hypertension have the highest risk of dying relative to other patients their age without these conditions,” said study lead author Katherine E. Goodman. This is made public as global COVID-19 infections crossed the 75 million mark on Saturday as several nations around the world commenced vaccinating against the deadly virus.