A report released recently by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that nearly 40% of patients admitted to the United States with COVID-19 are aged between 20 and 54 years, the largest proportion. This seems to be inconsistent with previous World Health Organization reports that “the elderly are at higher risk of severe COVID-19 infection”.
The report published by the US Centers for Disease Control and Analysis studied 4,226 cases of COVID-19 reported between February 12 and March 16. Of the 508 inpatients, 38% were between 20 and 54 years old, the largest proportion. In addition, 17% are between 55 and 64, 36% are between 65 and 84, and 9% are over 85.
The reporter interviewed authoritative medical experts in the United States in this regard. They believed that young people’s social activity, frequent international travel, and higher probability of contact with carriers and infected persons of the COVID-19 virus may be the main reasons behind this phenomenon.
Kent Pinkerton, a professor at the University of California, Davis School of Medicine, said that there are many speculations as to why young adults account for the largest proportion of COVID-19 inpatients in the United States. The main reason may include that they participate in more community activities and are often conducted. International and domestic travel, the greater the number and probability of exposure to carriers and infected persons of the COVID-19 virus.
Robert Sculley, director of the Department of Infectious Diseases and professor of pharmacy at the University of California, San Diego, said in an interview with reporters that the research on the evolution of the COVID-19 epidemic in the United States is still in its early stages. The current situation shows that it is often out The population is the earliest infected group. With the development of the epidemic, these young groups will bring the virus back, which may be transmitted to the elderly at home, and the average age of the patients may also change.
He said that unlike in China, young people in the United States rarely live with their parents and grandparents, so cross-infection between young people and the elderly occurs earlier and more in China than in the United States.
The report shows that like other countries, the elderly population in the United States has a relatively higher severity of illness and a higher risk of death. Of all patients, 53% of patients admitted to the intensive care unit and 80% of deaths were in groups over 65 years of age.
Pinkerton said that COVID-19 is more susceptible to the elderly and those with compromised immune systems or health problems, but adult patients of any age may be hospitalized for critical care and should not be taken lightly.