Study: COVID-19 can be more fatal than a heart attack for young adults
Severe coronavirus infections can be more fatal than a heart attack for younger adults.
A study published Wednesday from researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston took a look at nearly 781,000 coronavirus patients who were discharged between April 1 and June 30.
About 5 percent of those patients were between the ages of 18 to 34.
Researchers say people in that age range who were hospitalized with the virus experienced substantial rates of adverse outcomes.
About 21 percent required intensive care, 10 percent needed mechanical ventilation, and nearly 3 percent died.
More than half of the patients that required hospitalization in the study were Black or Hispanic, which was consistent with prior findings of the disproportionate impact the illness has had in those communities.
Researchers say that although the in-hospital mortality rate among young adults with COVID-19 is lower than it is for older adults, the rate is approximately double that of young adults who have heart attacks.