Many of those who succumb to COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, are reported to have had "preexisting medical conditions." According to a study by Israel Hayom, about a third of the population over the age of 40 are dealing with one or more of those conditions, such as diabetes, heart disease and hypertension.On Monday, the two youngest Israeli patients to have passed away from coronavirus so far – 49-year-old Tamar Peretz Levy, the mother of four-year-old twins, and 50-year-old Pazit Babian, the mother of three – were both reported to have "suffered from preexisting conditions."
Israel Hayom conducted an investigation which revealed that all 21 people who have died from coronavirus in Israel have had various conditions, ranging from diabetes to cancer or autoimmune disease.
The Hebrew daily reported that 18 of the 21 people who have died of coronavirus in Israel at the time had diabetes, eight had hypertension and seven suffered from cardiovascular disease (such as heart failure or peripheral vascular disease). Five patients were diagnosed with either dementia, a brain event or cognitive decline, and four had a lung disease. Other health conditions included liver disease, autoimmune disease and cancer - each in one patient.
Two of the 18 who had preexisting conditions had five conditions (11%), including neurological ones. One died of four illnesses (6%), two had three illnesses (11%), eight had two (44%) and five had only one preexisting condition (28%).
The World Health Organization figures show that the coronavirus mortality rate for people with cardiovascular disease is 10.5%. Among patients with diabetes, the likelihood of death increases by 7.3%, and patients with chronic lung disease face a mortality risk that increases by 6.3%. Also, in patients with hypertension - also known as high blood pressure - the risk of mortality increases by 6%, and among cancer patients the risk is 5.9% higher. The mortality rate of people without any preexisting conditions is only 0.9%.
The Health Ministry has so far avoided making specific recommendations for patients with various illnesses, and only a general recommendation has been given to the population over 60 to avoid leaving home and not coming into contact with younger family members.
When asked last week whether there are recommendations for patients with specific illnesses, Prof. Itamar Grotto, deputy director-general of the Health Ministry, replied to Israel Hayom that "at present, there is not enough cumulative information available for specific population recommendations."
"We know that the mortality rate among diabetics and smokers who are infected with coronavirus is twice as high as others their age, based on data from around the world and research from South Korea," Prof. Moti Ravid, director of the Mayanei Hayeshua Medical Center in Bnei Brak told the newspaper. "This means that if the risk of death of a person aged 40-49 is estimated at 0.4%, a person of that age who smokes or has diabetes doubles his or her mortality rate to 0.8%."