the Coronavirus outbreak thread

[Andad]

Originally Posted by Zakalwe

The answer to this is undoubtedly complex and probably not completely understood for what is a new pathogen. I’m certainly no expert in immunology or virology but it’s likely that the variation in severity (which is also seen with seasonal influenza) relates more to the host response than to the virus itself.

When you get an infection you generally feel ill because of the response mounted by your immune system. Some people’s immune systems over-react to the presence of a pathogen and it causes collateral damage and it’s these people that can become seriously unwell. Why do a minority react this way whilst most don’t? Genetics almost certainly plays a part. Certain environmental factors may be at play e.g. smoking. Advanced age degrades every system in your body, including response to infections.

The observation about more young people being affected is related to the increasing number of cases over time. It was never the case that young people could not become seriously unwell (the first notable death of the entire pandemic was a young, healthy Chinese doctor) but simply that their odds are much, much better than older people. Again to analogise with ‘flu - it’s known as a disease that seriously afflicts older people but it certainly does also kill young people - 674 annually in the U.K. in the 15-44 age group according to this:

https://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...63445313003733

It’s just that you never hear about them.

Could it just be that some were exposed to a higher viral load due to either multiple exposures or someone in a higher infectious condition?