The vast majority of those who have died of covid-19 in Italy have one or more underlying diseases, with high blood pressure and diabetes being the most common ailments. The average age of the dead was 80 years, a new study shows.

In the current study, published by the Italian health authority ISS, the researchers based on 2,003 deaths, of which 355 were selected for further analysis. It was found that in principle everyone, 99 percent, had underlying illnesses, with high blood pressure (76 percent), diabetes (35 percent) and heart disease (33 percent) being the most common. Only three patients, corresponding to 0.8 percent, had no underlying disease at all.

Five deaths occurred in the entire group where patients were not 40 years of age. All were men with serious, underlying, illnesses. There were more men than women in the whole group. In addition, the men were on average younger when they died (median 79.5 years) than the women (83.7 years).

Lethal mortality

However, the study does not say to what extent the diseases in question are believed to have contributed to the deaths. Both high blood pressure and diabetes are very common conditions, especially among the elderly.

Italy is the country that has suffered the worst of the corona virus in relation to the population. On Thursday, 3,405 people had died of the virus, which is more than what has died in China, while almost incomprehensible 2,500 people received intensive care, an increase of 250 patients compared to the previous day.

But why is the virus so deadly right there? For Italy, not only is it high in absolute terms, in the number of dead, but also in relation to the number of cases confirmed. The so-called covid-19 mortality rate in the country has been estimated at 6.6 percent. Comparing to just 0.2 percent in Germany.

The simple explanation is that Italy has failed to protect its elders. You couldn't, simply. However, this does not have as much to do with delays on the part of the authorities as it does by chance. For how an infection strikes a population is largely about luck - or bad luck.

In South Korea, for example, the virus was initially rooted in a religious sect that was largely made up of young people, giving the authorities time to act. In Italy, on the other hand, the virus began to spread in the field of health care and aging. By the time the authorities opened their eyes to the infection, the damage had largely already occurred.

Different mortality rates

Germany is a country that, like Sweden, has many old people. 29 percent of all Germans are 60 years or older. But in Germany, a vast majority - 84.5 percent - of those infected so far have been people under 60. This has resulted in the low covid-19 mortality in Germany.

The horror example of Italy has resulted in the Swedish authorities' strategy being fully focused on keeping the virus away from healthcare, elderly care and all other Swedes who are 70 years or older. The virus should not even come close to them.

This is also why the state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell the other day briefly stated that if the Swedish schools are closed, something he does not exclude, the purpose of this measure is not to protect the students - but the elderly. Protecting them is the only way to avoid a rampant death toll, as in Italy.