Covid effect: US saw 300k more deaths than in a typical year
BENGALURU/ LONDON: Nearly 300,000 more people have died in the US in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic than would be expected based on historical trends, with at least two-thirds due to Covid-19, a government report released on Tuesday showed, adding that Covid deaths likely were undercounted.
The report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimated that 299,028 more people died between January 26 and October 3 than the average numbers from past years would have indicated. CDC said that about 216,000 US deaths from the coronavirus had been reported by the middle of this month.
The count could miss deaths indirectly related to the pandemic, caused by disruptions in healthcare access or utilisation, and from conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and respiratory diseases, the report said. But it also could reflect rises in non-Covid-19 related deaths.
Long Covid can affect the fit and young, warns UK
Using stories of four individuals, one of them 22 years old, the Boris Johnson government on Wednesday cautioned against lowering the guard against Covid-19, highlighting the long-term devastating impact of the virus – better known as ‘long Covid’.
The symptoms of ‘long Covid’ - fatigue, protracted loss of taste or smell, respiratory and cardiovascular symptoms and mental health problems - are described in a new film as part of the wider UK-wide ‘Hands, Face, Space’ campaign.
The film features the stories of Jade, 22, Jade, 32, Tom, 32 and John, 48, who explain how their lives have been affected – weeks and months after being diagnosed with Covid-19, discussing symptoms such as breathlessness, intermittent fevers and chest pain.
A new study from King’s College London shows that one in 20 people with the virus are likely to have symptoms for eight weeks or more. It suggests that ‘long Covid’ affects around 10% of 18 to 49-year-olds.
Health secretary Matt Hancock said, “The findings from researchers at King’s College London are stark and this should be a sharp reminder to the public – including to young people – that Covid-19 is indiscriminate and can have long-term and potentially devastating effects”.