Risk of Death of Individuals with Different Comorbidity Profiles during the Covid-19 Pandemic.

Virginia Zarulli , University of Padova, Department of Statistics
Cosmo Strozza, Interdisciplinary Centre on Population Dynamics
Silvia Rizzi, Interdisciplinary Centre on Population Dynamics, University of Southern Denmark

During the COVID-19 pandemic chronic illnesses have been linked to a higher risk of hospitalization and mortality. Several studies have explored the connection between the presence of comorbidities and the risk of hospitalization and health outcomes in patients hospitalized from COVID-19. Also in Denmark, comorbidities appear to play a potentially detrimental role in worsening COVID-19 outcomes in Denmark, but most studies have focused on the first weeks of the pandemic, when potential issues in estimating infection fatality rates might have impacted the results. Moreover, the pandemic may have had differing effects on the mortality risk of comorbid individuals not hospitalized, either directly or indirectly. In our analysis, we consider the entire Danish population, not just the hospitalized individuals. Our goal is to investigate how comorbidities interacted with COVID-19 and whether the mortality risk for individuals with comorbidities changed during the pandemic. We will examine both pandemic waves, including COVID-19-specific and non-COVID-19-related mortality, to assess the direct and indirect effects of the pandemic on the mortality risk of individuals with and without comorbidities. We utilize comprehensive, nationwide Danish registry data, and employ survival analysis techniques. Preliminary results show Kaplan-Meier curves with a clear gradient in the risk of death based on comorbidity levels, with women exhibiting more pronounced differences. During the pandemic, the relationship between comorbidity and non-COVID-19-related deaths appears similar, while with COVID-19-related deaths appears less distinct, especially among men, indicating intriguing gender-health-specific patterns.

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 Presented in Session 100. Excess Mortality and Life Expectancy Changes during the COVID-19 pandemic