Hospitalizations are rising again in Lehigh Valley
Younger people are the majority of cases in latest surge of COVID-19 infections
As COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley, so do hospitalizations for the virus, but medical experts say unlike previous surges, far fewer of those hospitalized are seniors.
The seven-day average of new COVID-19 cases per day has more than doubled in Lehigh, Northampton, Monroe, Schuylkill and Carbon counties from the low 200s in mid-March to 471 as of April 4. Hospitalizations from COVID-19 in the five counties, though not at an all-time high, have also risen. From mid-March to April 6, hospitalizations increased by almost 75%, from 136 to 237.
Throughout much of the pandemic, people 65 years and older were the ones filling most of the COVID-19 beds at hospitals. But senior citizens are not the primary demographic being hospitalized under this new surge, Dr. Jeffrey Jahre, infectious disease expert for St. Luke’s University Health Network, said. That’s likely because seniors are the majority of people who have gotten the COVID-19 vaccine in the Lehigh Valley.
“We know the vaccine is effective, and obviously the fact that they’re not getting sick in the way that they did is further proof of that,” Jahre said.
Instead, most recent patients hospi
talized for COVID-19 at St. Luke’s are those in their 40s, 50s and early 60s, Jahre said. St. Luke’s also has seen an increase in the proportion of pediatric patients being hospitalized because of COVID-19, Jahre said, although the majority of COVID-19 patients are adults. St. Luke’s could not provide numbers on the hospitalizations of children.
Dr. Alex Benjamin, chief of infection control and hospital epidemiology for Lehigh Valley Health Network, said LVHN is seeing a similar phenomenon in those under 65 years old being hospitalized for COVID-19.
Jahre said that COVID fatigue, such as people wearing masks less, could be playing a part in the trends, but the spread of newer coronavirus strains, like the U.K. variant, likely is more responsible.
The U.K. variant, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced as the predominant strain in the U.S., is 50%-70% more infectious than the original dominant strain of coronavirus.
Jahre added that there is some evidence that those infected by the U.K variant may experience more symptoms, and younger people may be more susceptible to it. However, the U.K. is not resistant to vaccines, unlike some other new strains.
Benjamin said that though some people under 65 are eligible to get the vaccine and have done so, many have not yet been vaccinated. Roughly 20% of Pennsylvania’s population has been fully vaccinated and about 10% of the population has natural immunity to COVID-19 after recovering from the illness, Benjamin said. This means that two-thirds of the state’s population, the majority of who are younger than 65, are still vulnerable to catching COVID-19.
While more young people are ending up in the hospital, the number of deaths from COVID19 is down.
For most of 2021, Lehigh, Northampton, Monroe, Schuylkill and Carbon counties reported fewer new COVID-19 deaths each week than the prior one. During the week of March 28, the five counties reported nine COVID-19 deaths total making it the least fatal week of 2021 so far in those counties.
“The good news is that deaths are down, the bad news is that we have been seeing a rise that is reasonably steady over the last four or five weeks,” Jahre said.
Additionally, the number of patients on ventilators has remained low since mid-February.
While Benjamin said LVHN’s intensive care units are not overwhelmed or at capacity, it’s possible that could change if cases continue to rise and more people get sick enough to be hospitalized.
Jahre said the disease still needs to be taken seriously as people are still dying or ending up in severe condition. He added that many people who catch COVID-19 experience long-term effects, including young people who were asymptomatic or only experienced mild symptoms.