Comorbidities Proved Fatal In Most COVID-19 Deaths In West Bengal: Study

Kolkata: In most of the COVID-19 deaths in West Bengal comorbidities like hypertension, diabetes, cardiac problems, nephrotic syndrome and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD were found to be fatal, a study conducted by the state health department said. Hypertension was found in 30 per cent of the females who died of COVID-19, while the same was found in 28 per cent of the males who succumbed to the disease till the last week of November, the study said on Tuesday (December 8).

Also Read: Social Distancing Most Effective Tool To Combat COVID-19: Study

At least 24.5 per cent of the women who succumbed to COVID-19 were found to be diabetic, while among the men it was 24.2 per cent, it said. Other comorbidities like cardiac problems were found in 10.6 per cent men while it was prevalent among 8.3 per cent of women.

Nephrotic syndrome was found higher among males with10.2 per cent while among females it was 9.7 per cent, it said. The Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) had also affected around 5.5 per cent men and 3.9 per cent females, the study conducted across all the districts of West Bengal, said.

According to the study, COVID-19 had been more fatal in women than in men diagnosed with cancer and on dialysis. It also revealed that since the first COVID-19 death registered in West Bengal in March, the male case fatality rate (CFR) has dropped below the 2 per cent-mark while that of the female is below 1.5 per cent. The state’s overall CFR till Saturday was recorded at1.7 per cent while that of the country’s is 1.4 per cent. While the male CFR recorded till Saturday is 1.9 per cent, the female CFR is 1.3 per cent, the data revealed.

Also Read: Latest Discovery Provides Hope For Early Detection Of Serious COVID-19

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

NDTV – Dettol Banega Swasth India campaign is an extension of the five-year-old Banega Swachh India initiative helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. It aims to spread awareness about critical health issues facing the country. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign highlights the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children to prevent maternal and child mortality, fight malnutrition, stunting, wasting, anaemia and disease prevention through vaccines. Importance of programmes like Public Distribution System (PDS), Mid-day Meal Scheme, POSHAN Abhiyan and the role of Aganwadis and ASHA workers are also covered. Only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and become a Swasth or healthy India. The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene.