Interesting Early Facts about the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic
As the rate of new infections continues to climb here in the United States, there are more and more articles about the Coronavirus and how it is affecting people. Given that worldwide cases are now over a quarter of a million, the scientific community has compiled a good amount of data. While a lot of the numbers and analysis is preliminary, there are some interesting early results.
Risk of Infection by Blood Type
One interesting study looks at the blood types of COVID-19 infected patients to look at the levels of susceptibility. The study looked at 2173 patients. Then a comparison was made between the distribution of blood types in the normal population to the patients in the study. The analysis of the data showed that blood type A was affected significantly more than the non-A blood groups. The study also noticed that those in the 0 blood group had a lower risk of contracting the Coronavirus.
Comparison Chart:
| Blood Type | Normal Population | COVID-19 Infected Sample |
|---|---|---|
| Blood Type O | 34% | 25% |
| Blood Type A | 31% | 38% |
| Blood Type B | 24% | 26% |
| Blood Type AB | 9% | 10% |
Coronavirus Fatality by Gender
Another interesting point that just recently made the news looked at the fatality rate of those infected by COVID-19 by gender. Although the numbers show that men and women are almost equally infected, the death rate is higher in males. Males have a 2.8% death rate and women have a 1.7% death rate. The data shows that this appears consistent in different geographic locations.
Percent of Fatalities by Sex
| Country | Male | Female |
|---|---|---|
| China | 64% | 36% |
| Italy | 70% | 30% |
| South Korea | 54% | 46% |
There are many factors that could contribute to these numbers. Some are biological and others are lifestyle factors including smoking and drinking. These numbers have also been similar in other viral outbreaks including SARS.
Children at Lower Risk of Coronavirus
It was a little surprising to see the initial numbers showing that children had the lowest infection and fatality rate. As the cases have increased the numbers still support the earlier analysis. The overall death rate for children 10-19 years old is .2% and there are no fatalities recorded for children under 10 years old.
The CDC also analyzed cases in the United States and noticed that just 1.6% to 2.5% of 123 infected people 19 and under were admitted to hospitals. None of these people needed intensive care and none has died.
