COVID-19: 40% of New Severe Cases Are Under 60 – Here’s Why

According to a report released Sunday by the Coronavirus Knowledge and Information Center, there has been a very alarming increase in serious cases of COVID-19 among young people. “There is a clear decrease in the number of serious illnesses among the over 60s.” said. “There is an increase in the number of patients with a serious condition among younger groups, who made up about 40% of new severe cases last week.” According to data from the Ministry of Health, nearly 75% of people diagnosed at the weekend were under 40 years old. , while only about 7% were over the age of 60. on Sunday morning, 1,008 people were considered in serious condition, a slight increase from the day before when 973 people were in serious condition. 38% of the severe cases were under the age of 60. Last week, only about 34% of the cases were younger people. At the peak of the third wave, around January 20, it was only 26%, representing a 53% increase in the number of serious cases under the age of 60 in the past month. The cause, said Prof Cyrille Cohen, head of the immunotherapy laboratory at Bar-Ilan University, is twofold. On the one hand, the more the older population is protected by the vaccine, it is inherent that the younger, less protected population will contract the virus and thus be the relatively dominant population in the hospitals.

“The more cases, the more likely a percentage of those people will end up in the hospital – children, pregnant women, and people under 40 in general,” Cohen said. On the other hand, he said, it is beginning to be understood that the British variant is not only more contagious, but is likely to be more deadly. The British variety has become the dominant species in the country, according to the Knowledge Center report. “The species is known to be much more contagious compared to previous strains,” the report said, “and according to new studies in the UK, it is also more deadly by 30% to 70% compared to the original virus strain.” Galia Rahav , head of the Infectious Disease Unit and Laboratories at Sheba Medical Center, told The Jerusalem Post that genetic sequencing of pregnant women in a severe condition has shown that the majority were infected by the British mutation. In Sheba, as of Sunday morning, there were 55 patients in severe condition. Among them 13 in the coronavirus intensive care unit run by Dr. Yael Haviv Hadid. She told the Post that of those patients, five are being treated on ECMO machines – all under the age of 54. In addition, five people have been intubated – all under the age of 55. “We see young patients much more seriously than we’ve ever seen in young people in the past,” said Haviv Hadid. She stressed that the “optimism of the politicians” is misguided and that while the overall number of serious patients is declining, the struggle for the life of a 45-year-old is more “extreme” and “more difficult” than when the person is older. “We fight hard for everyone,” she said. “But a 45-year-old on ECMO – this is a very difficult situation.” It should be noted that the data so far shows that the death rate of people under 19 years old remains low. According to data presented Sunday morning by the Ministry of Health, only eight people under the age of 20 have died so far. Twenty-two people died between the ages of 20 and 29 and 104 between the ages of 30 and 49. So far, there were 570,680 patients under the age of 50, which means that only 0.02% of infected young people have died. Rahav explained that while these people may not die, a higher and growing percentage are experiencing so-called post-coronavirus symptoms, which can range from fatigue and shortness of breath to fast or pounding heartbeat or memory, concentration or sleep problems. Some people experience chest pain and headaches. A report from the Mayo Clinic found that imaging tests performed months after recovery from COVID-19 showed permanent damage to the heart muscle and lungs. “Even in young people, COVID-19 can cause strokes, seizures and Guillain-Barre syndrome – a condition that causes temporary paralysis,” the Mayor Clinic explained on its website. “COVID-19 may also increase the risk of developing it. of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. “” Don’t think when it’s over, the corona is over for these young people, “Rahav stressed. problems. ”Rahav said the hope is that soon children between the ages of 12 and 16 can be vaccinated, which will help protect and ensure the country achieves immunity to herds. Oxford University announced this weekend that it is launching a new study involving 300 child volunteers between the ages of 6 and 17 will participate to gauge whether the vaccine works in children. For now, Haviv Hadid said that everyone aged 16 and older should benefit from the Israeli vaccination campaign ne to Pfizer and get the shot. “If young people are going to get vaccinated, that would be great,” she said. “If not, those who don’t get vaccinated should at least wear masks and socialize.” People have to take their responsibility for themselves, she continued, saying she sees too many young people across all sectors unvaccinated and not cautious, adding that if the government makes a decision to open up too soon, Israel will be quick. will be back where it started. “I don’t understand why people don’t care,” she added. “Why is an entire country frozen because people think they’re not part of the national mission? These are haredim, Arabs, the people on the beach in Tel Aviv. Eventually everyone will get sick. “” Today we fight for the lives of young patients aged 44, 46, 47 and 50 who deteriorated over the weekend, “said Prof. Ze’ev Feldman , director of the Department of Pediatrics. Neurosurgery at Sheba and President of the World Fellowship of the Israeli Medical Association. “The pressure to open up will take us to a fourth close,” he said. “The health system and medical staff are still being stretched to the limit. You have to stop and listen to the Ministry of Health and act responsibly. ”