Daily updates on new cases of COVID-19 and deaths related to the illness often include people 65 and older. Why do the elderly tend to be more susceptible to viral infections?
People younger than 65 have also fallen victim to the disease, but a released in late March provided a comprehensive estimate of elderly people鈥檚 elevated risk of serious illness and death from the new coronavirus: COVID-19 kills an estimated 13.4% of patients 80 and older, compared to 1.25% of those in their 50s and 0.3% of those in their 40s.
The sharpest divide came at age 70. Although 4% of patients in their 60s died, more than twice that, or 8.6%, of those in their 70s did.
四虎影院 Vital Signs host Sam Baker talked about why this divide exists with Dr. Raja Paspula, a geriatric specialist and the senior lead staff physician of Parkland Hospital鈥檚 Community Oriented Primary Care Centers.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS:
Preexisting Conditions
The elderly are more likely to have preexisting conditions known as . These include:
- Heart disease,
- Diabetes
- Lung disease
- COPD
- Asthma
- Hypertension
- Cancer
- Immunocompromised state
- Liver disease
- Chronic kidney disease
Biological Aging And Declining Immunity
The immune system is like an internal defense mechanism 鈥� but it grows weaker as we age. Older people aren鈥檛 as good in reacting to microorganisms they haven't encountered before.
Two Sets Of Defenses
Our immune system has two sets of defenses: The first-line army of cells called leukocytes that attack microbes within minutes or hours. The second-line force have precisely targeted antibodies, T-cells, that surge to battle front. As we get older, the response becomes late, so that's causing the elderly to become more prone to these infections.
Social & Economic Factors
Access to safe housing, nutritious food, economic resources, social support systems and quality health care are some of the non-biological determinants. Lack of this obviously leads to more covert infections and that's what we are seeing a large number of.
Living In Nursing Homes
[These residents] are much sicker than the community population. They have more comorbid conditions, they have less immunity and they are living in close proximity with the other elderly patients, making them more prone to these infections.
Elderly Deaths From Viral Infections Despite Vaccines
The way we can explain that is a young person who gets vaccinated has better immunity. There's something called immunity memory where the younger person鈥檚 body will be able to recognize any type of virus in the future as opposed to the elderly. The immunity memory kind of decreases as we age. That's why they're more prone to these infections, including flu and other infections, though they have vaccinations.
How Elderly People Can Protect Themselves
- Washing hands with soap and water at least 20 seconds or using hand sanitizers.
- Social distancing, keeping a six feet distance from one another and are using face masks if they're going outside.
- Make sure they have enough refills of medication, food supplies and medical supplies so they鈥檙e not going too often.
- Telemedicine: If the visit is not urgent, the patient definitely can speak to their doctor
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