The millennial generation is not invincible. New data from COVID-19 cases in the US shows that up to a fifth of infected people between the ages of 20 and 44 have been hospitalized, including the percentage of people who required treatment in an intensive care unit.
Early data from China examining the country’s first 44,000 cases suggested that the most severe COVID-19 cases and deaths occurred in adults 60 and older and those with underlying conditions. However, the first report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that 1 in 5 people admitted to the hospital are between the ages of 20 and 44. The disease can also affect younger adults.
The data confirm this concern also in Italy, the most affected country in Europe. There , almost a quarter of the almost 28,000 coronavirus patients are between 19 and 50 years old, according to the Statista data website.
Do not underestimate the coronavirus
Health experts warn that it is not impossible for younger adults to develop a severe form of the disease or even die from it, even those who have no other obvious risk factors and are completely healthy.
The World Health Organization has also warned after evaluating the pandemic in China that there had been many deaths in people without other health conditions and in people decades younger than the groups considered to be at higher risk , according to Bruce Aylward, director of this WHO mission in the eastern country.
No one is free from contagion
Young people around the world should know that the coronavirus is not a trivial infection and should do everything possible to combat its spread (even in countries like the United Kingdom, young people continue to socialize in bars despite the government’s urging society to avoid them).
Thus, emerging evidence suggests that young people as well as young children or infants may also be at risk for serious complications. In a study of more than 2,000 young children with COVID-19 from China, published this week in the journal Pediatrics , Chinese doctors found that approximately 11% of infant cases were severe or critical, as was 7% toddlers and preschoolers. While it is still a lower rate of serious illness than adults, it is not insignificant. Clearly, more evidence and more widespread monitoring are needed to better determine who is at risk and what actions communities should take to protect vulnerable groups.
The death by COVID-19 of healthy young people is the exception that confirms the rule and, according to statistics, this figure will increase with the increase in the number of cases if the contagion is not stopped. So remember: it is lethal also in young and healthy people. The unknowns are still many, hence no one should lower their guard and break confinement. Even if you don’t think it will affect you personally, think that you may be contributing to the general transmission and putting many people at risk . The sooner we all understand it, the sooner we will win the battle against COVID-19.
Referencia: Severe Outcomes Among Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) — United States, February 12–March 16, 2020 CDC COVID-19 Response Team MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Published March 18, 2020. doi: 10.15585/mmwr.mm6912e2.
