The coronavirus does not give truce even to young people, as it happened in the first wave of infections. Today the viral infection sends them to the hospital, where not all of them manage to survive. Pichincha is the province with the most youth deaths.
The trend, since the beginning of the pandemic, in Ecuador and the world, has been for those over 65 to die more. But the monthly records of minor deaths in hospitals also show an increase.
Between January and May 12, 2021, 4,962 people have died with SARS-COV-2, confirmed or probable. Of this number of victims, 416 were young adults, aged 20 to 49, representing 9.4%. It is seen that there is a duplication, when comparing with the 179 deceased from September to December 2020.
The increase has been progressive; last January and February 68 and 69 deaths were reported, respectively, while in March and April the figures rose to 125 and 130 deaths. The first 12 days of May there were another 24 deaths; that is, on average, two people a day failed to overcome the virus, at these ages, according to statistics from the Ministry of Public Health (MSP).
The figures for the first four months of this year are lower than those of June and July 2020, months in which 156 and 170 young people died.
Newer variants of COVID-19 have been said to be more contagious and affect young people more than the original virus. Jairo Méndez, from the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), explained that some of these variants of the coronavirus do indeed have a greater capacity to transmit and replicate, but they are not more aggressive or severe.
To understand this increase in deaths among young people, it must be understood that they have a greater exposure to the virus, because they are more active in the workplace. Another point that epidemiologists point out is the prevalence of pre-existing medical conditions, which could aggravate the clinical picture.
Of the 416 juvenile deaths, 77 correspond to Pichincha, 61 to Manabí, 44 to Guayas and 42 to El Oro. These four provinces account for 54% of these deaths at an early age.
According to hospital records, 82 stated that they had been studying; 16 said they were high school graduates; 47 were dedicated to housework, another 35 were drivers, a large part, professional driving. The list includes 61 private employees and a dozen public ones. Engineers from different branches number 20.
More than a dozen carried out trades, such as carpentry, masonry, locksmith, sewing, cooking, among others.
The deaths occurred mainly in the health homes of the MSP (245) and, to a lesser extent, in those of the Social Security (150). The vast majority died with a confirmatory laboratory test.
The second affected age group with the most fatalities is between 50 and 64 years of age, with a weight of 28.2% in the mortality statistics for this 2021.
534 people of these ages died in the last four months of 2020, while from January to May 12, there are already 1,371; 157% more. Manabí tops the list, after Pichincha, Guayas and El Oro.
In the MSP hospitals, 704 adults died and another 600 in the IESS units, so the gap between the two entities is smaller.
There were more people in domestic activities in this group (260); 30 were teachers, 15 soldiers, 12 of them in passive service. Another 150 claimed to be employees, without specifying the sector, 43 were engineers and workers with various trades exceeded 100.
The lack of timely medical care, due to the saturation of hospital centers, is among the difficulties that economically active patients have faced.
Until this May 11, after three weekends of confinement, the occupancy of the intensive care units (ICU) was 89%, but in Pichincha it was 98% and in Guayas, 96%, according to the National COE.
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