Adults 20 to 49 may Account for Highest US COVID-19 Surges

Research from London shows that people belonging to the age group 20-49 were responsible for 72.2% of COVID-19 case resurgences in the US during summer 2020. People aged 35 to 49 have significantly contributed to the resurgence.

The //research team analyzed age-specific cell phone mobility data of 10 million-plus Americans from 42 US states and linked them to age-specific COVID-19 deaths from Mar 15, 2020.

Findings showed that until mid-August, the 35 - 49-year age-group contributed to 41.1% of virus transmission, compared with 2.1% from children (0-9 years), 4.0% from teens (10-19 years), 34.7% in 20-34 years, 15.3% in 50-64 years, 2.5% in 65-79 years, and 0.3% in 80 and older.

The authors explain that based on the combined mobility and death data, the reconstructed fluctuations in age-specific numbers had a modest impact on the contribution of age groups to increased spread over time, and no evidence that young adults aged 20-34 were the primary source of resurgent COVID-19 cases.

However, the authors add, by October 2020, the 20 - 49-year age-group was the only one with a reproduction number above 1, which is the level it takes for an outbreak to expand. The contribution to the spread of cases by age-groups was 72.2% for adults in the age group 20 to 49 years by that time.

The authors explain, "This study indicates that in locations where novel highly transmissible SARS-CoV-2 lineages have not yet been established, additional interventions among adults aged 20-49, such as mass vaccination with transmission-blocking vaccines, could bring resurgent COVID-19 epidemics under control and avert deaths.”

They add, "Adults aged 20-49 naturally have most contacts to other adults aged 20 and above, making them both more vulnerable to the virus and more mobile than younger people.”

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention and their vaccine advisory panel recommend that healthcare workers, long-term care staff and residents, and essential frontline workers be prioritized for vaccines.

Dr. Anthony Fauci said that while older people are more at risk for severe diseases, experts have believed for some time that younger people are driving the spread of the virus in the US.

Dr. Jonathan Reiner, professor of medicine, states, "Ultimately, everyone has to be vaccinated. If you end up vaccinating older people, you'll save their lives because they're at higher risk. And if you vaccinate younger people, you'll save lives also because they're spreading the virus." Source-Medindia