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A recently published study found that nearly half of people hospitalized for COVID-19 in 2021 may have been admitted for another reason entirely, or were mild or asymptomatic for the respiratory virus.
Conducted by a team of researchers from Harvard Medical School, Tufts Medical Center and the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, the peer-reviewed analysis examined electronic records of nearly 50,000 COVID hospital admissions in more than 100 VA hospitals across the country.
According to The Atlantic, the researchers “checked to see if each patient needed supplemental oxygen or had a blood oxygen level below 94%” and if “either of these conditions was met, authors classified this patient as having moderate to severe disease; otherwise, the case was considered mild or asymptomatic. “
“The study found that from March 2020 to early January 2021 – before vaccination was generalized and before the arrival of the Delta variant – the proportion of patients with mild or asymptomatic disease was 36%,” indicates the report. “From mid-January to the end of June 2021, however, that number rose to 48%. In other words, the study suggests that about half of all hospitalized patients appearing on COVID data dashboards in 2021 may have been admitted for some other reason, or only had a light presentation. of disease. “
The report later notes that the increase was even larger for vaccinated hospital patients, 57 percent with mild or asymptomatic illness. Additionally, the study found that unvaccinated patients also had less severe symptoms, on average, than at the start of the outbreak, with 45% of cases being mild or asymptomatic since Jan.21.
The study results raise serious concerns about whether similar trends are occurring in hospitals across the country. According to Dr Shira Doron, one of the co-authors of the study, refining the definition of hospitalizations is essential when examining COVID-related public policy measures that affect entities such as schools and businesses.
“As we seek to move from cases to hospitalizations as a measure to drive policy and assess the level of risk to a community, state or country, we need to refine the definition of hospitalization, “she said.” These patients who are there with rather than of COVID does not belong to the metric. “
Shawn Fleetwood is an intern at The Federalist and a student at the University of Mary Washington, where he plans to major in political science and major in journalism. He is also a state content writer for the Convention of States Action. Follow him on Twitter @ShawnFleetwood
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