A quarter of patients aged 18 to 39 developed pneumonia. The more symptoms patients have, the greater the risk.
- Patients infected with Covid-19 and who have had symptoms are the most prone to developing pneumonia.
- Of the 315 individuals hospitalized, chest X-rays revealed 83 cases of pneumonia, 7 of which were serious.
The epidemic rebound is mainly driven by young people, especially those under 40 who are the age group most affected by Covid-19. If they are only very little affected by serious cases of Covid-19 infection, a new South Korean study reveals that a quarter of them subsequently develop pneumonia. The results will be presented next week at the ESCMID conferencethe European Society for Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, on coronavirus disease, the first major international congress on the pandemic, which will be held online from Wednesday.
The more symptoms, the higher the risk of pneumonia.
South Korean researchers observed 315 young patients hospitalized for a Covid-19 infection and admitted to six hospitals in Daegu (South Korea), between February 18 and March 31. Note that hospitalization does not necessarily mean that they have developed a severe form of infection since in South Korea hospitalization is systematic for all South Koreans infected with the virus, within the limits of available beds. There were therefore, among the volunteers, people with more or less serious forms as well as asymptomatic subjects.
The results showed that regardless of the severity of Covid-19 infection, 26% of young people aged 18 to 39 develop pneumonia. Of the 315 individuals hospitalized, chest X-rays revealed 83 cases of pneumonia. Among them, 7 had severe pneumonia, including one who had no other medical history that required mechanical ventilation. Patients who had symptoms are the most represented since only 32 were asymptomatic, only one of whom subsequently contracted pneumonia.
Beware of the lack of caution in young people
This study is intended as a warning to young people. “Younger generations should also be aware of the risk of pneumonia, even severe pneumonia, linked to Covid-19”, warned the researchers. “The lack of caution of young people has become a social problem throughout the world”, they added.
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