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In a new study, intensive care physicians in Germany examined the mortality of inpatient Covid 19 patients.

Accordingly, around 50 percent of patients in intensive care units in Germany died in connection with Covid-19.

In the case of inpatient treatment of Covid-19 patients, the proportion was around a fifth.

This emerges from the first Germany-wide analysis of intensive care and emergency medicine, which was created on the basis of completed hospital cases and presented on Wednesday at a virtual conference of the German Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive and Emergency Medicine.

For the study, the data from around 10,000 hospitalized patients during the first corona wave in spring were evaluated.

For example, it examined how many people had to be connected to ventilators and what role previous illnesses played.

According to Prof. Dr.

Christian Karagiannidis, head of the ECMO center at the Lung Clinic Cologne Mehrheim, the majority of intensive care patients had to be ventilated invasively during the first wave, i.e. using a tube laid in the trachea.

However, there are signs that this ratio has shifted in the current second wave and the proportion of invasive patients requiring ventilation has decreased significantly, said Karagiannidis.

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After evaluating the data, the gender ratio was also noticeable.

Although the coronavirus hit men and women equally, more men had to be treated in the intensive care unit than women - their share is twice as high.

"The toughest risk factor is age"

There is also an increase in knowledge about previous illnesses.

Many patients in the intensive care unit suffered from high blood pressure and diabetes.

However, the proportion of people with high blood pressure in Germany is also very high overall.

It is particularly noticeable that many patients have suffered from kidney failure, much more so than with the flu infection.

“30 percent of the ventilated patients required dialysis, so they needed a blood wash.

That is much more than with other intensive care diseases, ”says Karagiannidis.

Chronic lung diseases, on the other hand, only played a minor role, according to the doctor.

Only about twelve percent of intensive care patients suffered from lung diseases - even though asthma or smokers' lungs are widespread in the population.

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Karagiannidis identified the age of intensive care patients as the greatest risk factor for a fatal outcome: "The hardest risk factor for dying from this disease is not a previous illness, but age." The mortality rate in intensive care patients over 80 years is over 70 percent and also for people over 70 it is still almost 65 percent - “that's a lot”.

In the case of intensive care patients under 60, the mortality rate was still more than 20 percent.

German health system at an advantage

The doctor also emphasized structural advantages in the German health system.

In the first wave, doctors in other European countries, such as Italy, had to use triage to make a pre-selection at the expense of older patients.

In Germany one was not forced to make this difficult decision: "We could treat all patients, regardless of their age," said Karagiannidis.

This is also clear in comparison to Great Britain.

While around 30 percent of Covid 19 patients there died in outpatient wards, the proportion in Germany was 16 percent.

The physician attributes this to more resources.

"It is a huge advantage that we have so many resources available in Germany."

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According to the pulmonologist, there could soon be a "stabilization phase" in German intensive care units.

There are currently around 4,000 patients in intensive care units.

Even with a maximum increase of 30 percent, the situation in the hospitals would stabilize.

This is a "glimmer of hope".

However, an improvement could only occur if too many people were not infected at Christmas.

“Thanksgiving was an amazing booster in Canada and the US.

My recommendation is therefore: Have yourself tested before Christmas if you feel the slightest hint of an illness, such as a sore throat, ”demanded Karagiannidis.

This is the only way to prevent superspreader events.