A new study conducted by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) has found that the risk of dying from the British variant of the coronavirus, B.1.1.7, is 61% higher than from older variants. The study analyzed 1.1 million patient records of individuals who tested positive for the specific characteristics of the new variant. The results showed that the mortality rate for B.1.1.7 is significantly higher than for older variants, particularly for individuals aged 70 to 84. In this age group, the mortality rate for women is 4.4% and for men, it is 7.2%. However, for individuals under 70, the mortality rate for B.1.1.7 remains below 1%.
A previous study conducted by Public Health England (PHE) in December 2020 had suggested that the B.1.1.7 variant did not cause more severe illness or deaths than older variants. However, this study only analyzed data from 1,800 infected individuals and was conducted at a time when not all deaths had been recorded. The LSHTM study, published in the journal Nature, provides a more comprehensive analysis of the mortality risk associated with the B.1.1.7 variant.
Another study conducted by the University of Exeter, which analyzed health data from over 100,000 individuals over the age of 30 who had been infected with B.1.1.7, found that the mortality risk associated with this variant was 64% higher than with other variants of the virus. However, the study also noted that the real mortality risk may be lower, as individuals who were infected with B.1.1.7 but had no or mild symptoms were less likely to be tested and therefore not included in the analysis.
Overall, these studies suggest that the B.1.1.7 variant poses a higher mortality risk than older variants of the virus, particularly for older individuals. However, it is important to note that the mortality risk associated with the variant remains relatively low, particularly for individuals under 70. As vaccination efforts continue, it is hoped that the overall mortality rate from COVID-19 will continue to decline.
