Monday, November 16, 2009

Which age group is at greatest death risk from H1N1?

The answer may surprise you. According to a November 12th study from the Lancet, which focused on Mexico, where the outbreak originally began, the greatest mortality risk were in those:

Aged 70 and older: 10.3%
60 to 69 year-olds: 5.7%
50 to 59 year-olds: 4.5%
40 to 49 year-olds: 2.7%
30 to 39 year-olds: 2%
20 to 29 year-olds: 0.9%
10 to 19 year-olds: 0.2%
1 to 9 year-olds: 0.3%
1 year or younger: 1.6%

While the group most likely to be infected with H1N1 are those aged 10 to 39, this data certainly shows that young persons are not dying at a higher rate than older persons like some media reports lead you to believe.

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