Do old people constitute the majority of COVID-19 fatalities?

More than 95 per cent people who died due to coronavirus-related complications in Europe were aged 60 and above, as per World Health Organization’s figures.

The head of WHO in Europe, Dr Hans Kluge however added that age is not the risk factor for COVID-19. “The very notion that COVID-19 only affects older people is factually wrong”, Kluge said.

Also read: United States records highest one-day COVID-19 death toll with 1,169 fatalities

An online conference was organised by the WHO in Copenhagen yesterday, whereby Klugee added “young people are not invincible”, a sentiment which was recently echoed by WHO’s Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

According to UN data, only 10-15 per cent of people aged below 50 contract moderate to severe infection.

“Severe cases of the disease have been seen in people in their teens or 20s with many requiring intensive care and some unfortunately passing away,” Kluge added.

Also read: As domestic violence against women soars due to lockdown, Europe tries something new!

Kluge also said that over 30,098 people in Europe have now died - with Italy, France, and Spain adding most numbers to this toll.

“We know that over 95 percent of these deaths occurred in those older than 60 years,” he said, with more than half aged over 80.

Also read: Earth is less noisy during COVID-19, say seismologists

Almost four out of five who died were suffering from other conditions, like diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease.

“On a positive note, there are reports of people over the age of 100 who were admitted to hospital for COVID-19 and have now — since — made a complete recovery,” he added.

(With inputs from agencies)