COVID-19 Positive Britons With Obesity, Dementia, Heart Disease At The Highest Risk of Death

Nearly one-third of all patients admitted to a hospital due to coronavirus infections in the U.K. die, according to a recent study. Patients who have dementia and obesity are at the highest risk of death due to COVID-19 in the U.K.

The findings are a part of a major British study organized by the Coronavirus Clinical Characterisation Consortium. The study looked for the characteristics of over 17,000 people admitted to a hospital with coronavirus infection in the U.K.

The study showed that nearly 33 percent of the patient admitted to the hospital due to severe COVID-19 symptoms died. The percentage increased to 45 percent in the case of patients who received care in an intensive cure unit and as much as 53 percent in the case of patients requiring invasive ventilation during the hospital stay.

The risk of death among COVID-19 patients admitted to the hospital was the highest among those suffering from dementia (39%), followed by obesity (37%) and cardiovascular disease (31%).

Shockingly, the researchers did note that more than half of the patients admitted to the hospital has one or the other pre-existing condition. Out of these, cardiovascular disease was the most common (29%), followed by diabetes without complications, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Obesity being one of the leading risk factors was death among patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 in Britain, indicates a lot of things. It shows that even if other underlying conditions such as heart, lung or kidney-related disorders are removed, a body mass index (BMI) of more than 30 is a single important risk of death due in COVID-19 patients.

This also points to the fact that reduced lung function due to obesity in such patients and inflammation in the fat cells may have a direct link to mortality due to COVID-19.

Surprisingly, the study further adds to the evidence that smokers may be given some protective effect by cigarettes as less than 10 percent of the total hospital admissions were actually smokers. However, that does not mean that people should resort to smoking to prevent hospital admission if they are COVID-19 because it is definitely detrimental to the health of the lungs.

The study also showed that men are a greater risk of hospitalization sue to coronavirus infection as compared to women and that the risk of death increased with age among patients in the hospital.