COVID‐19 and Older Adults: What We Know

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), a novel virus that causes COVID‐19 infection, has recently emerged and caused a deadly pandemic. Studies have shown that this virus causes worse outcomes and a higher mortality rate in older adults and those with comorbidities such as hyp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 2020-05, Vol.68 (5), p.926-929
Main Authors: Shahid, Zainab, Kalayanamitra, Ricci, McClafferty, Brendan, Kepko, Douglas, Ramgobin, Devyani, Patel, Ravi, Aggarwal, Chander Shekher, Vunnam, Ramarao, Sahu, Nitasa, Bhatt, Dhirisha, Jones, Kirk, Golamari, Reshma, Jain, Rohit
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Angiotensin II
Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors
Betacoronavirus
Cardiovascular diseases
coronavirus
Coronavirus Infections - diagnosis
Coronavirus Infections - mortality
Coronavirus Infections - physiopathology
Coronavirus Infections - therapy
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
COVID‐19‐Related Content
Diabetes
Diabetes mellitus
Disease
Humans
Hypertension
Infections
Kidney diseases
Mortality
Non-Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
older adults
Older people
Pandemics
Pneumonia, Viral - diagnosis
Pneumonia, Viral - mortality
Pneumonia, Viral - physiopathology
Pneumonia, Viral - therapy
Respiratory diseases
Review
Risk Factors
SARS-CoV-2
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
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Summary:Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), a novel virus that causes COVID‐19 infection, has recently emerged and caused a deadly pandemic. Studies have shown that this virus causes worse outcomes and a higher mortality rate in older adults and those with comorbidities such as hypertension, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disease, and chronic kidney disease (CKD). A significant percentage of older American adults have these diseases, putting them at a higher risk of infection. Additionally, many adults with hypertension, diabetes, and CKD are placed on angiotensin‐converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor blockers. Studies have shown that these medications upregulate the ACE‐2 receptor, the very receptor that the SARS‐CoV‐2 virus uses to enter host cells. Although it has been hypothesized that this may cause a further increased risk of infection, more studies on the role of these medications in COVID‐19 infections are necessary. In this review, we discuss the transmission, symptomatology, and mortality of COVID‐19 as they relate to older adults, and possible treatments that are currently under investigation. J Am Geriatr Soc 68:926–929, 2020
ISSN:0002-8614
1532-5415
DOI:10.1111/jgs.16472