The fifth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to ravage Hong Kong at an alarming rate of tens of thousands of infections and more than 100 deaths every day. The cumulative death cases have exceeded 1,000. Recently, the Centre for Health Protection completed an analysis on 442 of the death cases, which shows a reverse correlation between the mortality rate and the vaccination status of the COVID-19 victims, a result that people who have yet to receive a vaccination should pay attention to.
Of the 442 deaths analyzed by the CHP, 60 percent were males. All cases ranged in age from 11 months to 104 years, with a median of 84 years. By age group, there were 35 deaths in the group of 60 to 69 years old with a mortality rate of 0.17 percent; 80 deaths in the group of 70 to 79 years old with a mortality rate of 0.87 percent; and 292 deaths in the group of 80 years old or above with a mortality rate of 4.6 percent.
From the above figures, we can draw the following conclusions. First, most of the deaths were elderly people. There were 407 cases of people over 60 years old, accounting for more than 92 percent of the total cases. Second, the virus is more lethal for older people. The death rate for the 60-to-69-year-old group was 0.17 percent; for the 70-to-79-year-old group, the death rate jumped more than 400 percent to 0.87 percent; and for the 80-year-old group, the death rate rose further, jumping by another 400 percent to 4.6 percent.
Zhong Nanshan, a mainland respiratory disease expert and academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, suggested that we could see an exponential rise in the mortality rate if Hong Kong fails to raise the local vaccination rate significantly and implement effective quarantining of all confirmed and close-contact cases, resulting in a large number of infections among the elderly
The United Kingdom also published some data in early February that roughly tells the same story. According to the UK data, the mortality rate of people diagnosed with omicron in the 60-to-69-year-old group is about 3 percent; it jumped to about 10 percent in the 70-to-79-year-old group; and as high as 100 percent in the 80-year-old group. Citing the British data, Zhong Nanshan, a mainland respiratory disease expert and academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, suggested that we could see an exponential rise in the mortality rate if Hong Kong fails to raise the local vaccination rate significantly and implement effective quarantining of all confirmed and close-contact cases, resulting in a large number of infections among the elderly.
At the same time, the CHP’s analysis also showed that the mortality rate of confirmed patients who have been vaccinated was only 0.03 percent, but the mortality rate of patients who have not completed the vaccination was 0.27 percent, or 800 percent higher. As for the elderly aged 80 or above, if they have received two doses of the vaccine, the mortality rate was only 0.27 percent, while the mortality rate of the elderly who have not completed the vaccination was as high as 4.34 percent, or 1,500 percent higher. Of the 442 deaths analyzed by the CHP, more than 91 percent of those who died had not yet completed the vaccination; 359 cases had not received any anti-COVID-19 vaccine, accounting for 81 percent of the total.
Judging from the above statistics, one can see a reverse correlation between the mortality rate of the infected individuals and their vaccination status. The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government and medical experts have been urging every resident to get vaccinated as soon as possible, which is not an alarmist thing. The anti-COVID-19 vaccines protect people by stimulating the body to produce antibodies. Through the study of other vaccines, doctors can tell with certainty that the vaccination can help the infected to avoid developing serious syndromes, thereby reducing the mortality rate.
To overcome this pandemic, it is necessary to immediately carry out citywide COVID-19 testing and implement an effective quarantine for the confirmed patients and their close contacts. Only by implementing these three measures effectively can we rein in the fifth wave of the COVID-19 outbreak.
The author, a radiologist, is a co-founder of the Hong Kong Coalition and a council member of the Chinese Young Entrepreneurs Association.