Most COVID-19 Patients Report Underlying Medical Conditions

In the USA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) surveillance tracking levels of SARS-CoV-2 virus circulation and associated illnesses declined or remained stable during the week ending December 26, 2020; however, there were regional differences.

Nationally, the overall percentage of respiratory specimens testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19, decreased slightly from 12.4% during week 51 to 12.3% during week #52. Percent positivity increased among two age groups (0–4 years and 5–17 years).

However, the percentage of deaths due to pneumonia, influenza, and COVID-19 (PIC) has increased since early October 2020. Both COVID-19-associated hospitalizations and PIC mortality for the most recent weeks are expected to increase as more data are received, stated the CDC on January 4, 2021.

Among 15,401 sampled adults hospitalized during March 1–September 30, 2020, with information on underlying medical conditions (90%), the most-reported underlying medical conditions were hypertension (56.3%), obesity (48.2%), metabolic disease (42.0%), and cardiovascular disease (32.7%).