By Ethan Covey
In-hospital mortality among patients with COVID-19 has fallen steeply as the pandemic has progressed, including during recent omicron variant waves, according to an analysis from the CDC.
During the later period of omicron variant predominance (April 2022 through June 2022), the risk for death among hospitalized COVID-19 patients decreased to the lowest level seen since the start of the pandemic (MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2022;71[37]:1182-1189).
“This analysis showed a steep decrease in the risk of death among hospitalized COVID-19 patients, including among patients at highest risk for severe illness,” said Tegan Boehmer, PhD, the commander of the U.S. Public Health Service’s COVID-19 Emergency Response at the CDC, in Atlanta.
Rates of COVID-19 hospitalizations and in-hospital deaths for the period of April through June 2022 were calculated using data from 678 hospitals in the Premier Healthcare Database Special COVID-19 Release. A total of 1,072,106 COVID-19 hospitalizations and 128,517 in-hospital deaths were reported.
The analysis found that the risk for death among hospitalized COVID-19 patients decreased to 5% during the later period of omicron predominance—one-third of that during the period of delta variant predominance, at 15%.
Additionally, the report identified that high-risk patients—people 65 years of age and older, people with disabilities, and those with multiple underlying medical conditions—accounted for a larger proportion of COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths during the later omicron period.
“At this stage of the pandemic, we are seeing two positive trends,” Dr. Boehmer said. “First, younger adults (ages 65 years and younger) and people with few underlying conditions are being hospitalized for COVID-19 less often. Second, older adults (ages 65 years and older) and people with multiple underlying conditions who are hospitalized are less likely to die. These positive trends are likely related to higher levels of immunity and availability of effective outpatient treatments.”
Dr. Boehmer noted, however, that despite the lower mortality risk seen during recent months, people in the aforementioned groups remain at the highest risk for death.
“The best lines of defense to protect the highest-risk populations are vaccination, early treatment and appropriate nonpharmaceutical interventions, such as masks and respirators,” she said.
