COVID-19: Obese people at greater risk of severe complications, says study

A recent study conducted by an Italian University observed that obese people are at higher risk of becoming severely ill with coronavirus disease, that has been raging havoc across the world for the past seven months. According to the study, people with obese body mass indexes are being admitted to the intensive care unit at a much higher rate and their chances of dying from the disease are also higher than those with normal BMIs. The study was conducted by researchers from the Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna in Italy and it was published in the European Journal of Endocrinology. 

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High-risk patients

As per the study, a BMI of 40 is considered as 'high risk' in places such as the United Kingdom and the United States, but the study has found that people with a BMI of 30 are also at greater risk of contracting severe coronavirus and eventually becoming dying from the disease. The study analyzed nearly 500 patients who were admitted with symptoms of coronavirus across Italy. The study concluded that obese people need to be extra careful during the current health crisis as they are at higher risk of COVID-19 severity and death. 

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"Of 482 patients, 104 (21.6%) had a BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2. A logistic regression analysis, a BMI between 30 and 34.9 kg/m2 significantly increased the risk of respiratory failure and admission to the ICU. A significantly higher risk of death was observed in patients with a BMI ≥ of 35 kg/m2. Obesity is a strong, independent risk factor for respiratory failure, admission to the ICU, and death among COVID-19 patients. Whereas a BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2 identifies a population of patients at high risk for severe illness, a BMI ≥ 35 kg/m2 dramatically increases the risk of death," the study said. 

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According to Johns Hopkins University, the United States is currently the worst affected country due to COVID-19 and coincidently the country is also home to one of the highest number of obese people in the world. The United States has recorded over 3.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases and at least 1,38,300 deaths as of July 16. Meanwhile, the world has logged in 13.8 million infections and nearly 5,90,000 deaths. 

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