COVID-19 hospitalization rate increases among adolescents
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The COVID-19 hospitalization rate for adolescents aged 12 to 17 years in the United States rose in recent months following declines in January and February, according to data reported today in MMWR.
According to the report, weekly COVID-19-related hospitalizations per 100,000 adolescents peaked at 2.1 in early January 2021, declined to 0.6 in mid-March, but rose to 1.3 in April.
Of the 204 adolescents included in the new report who were “likely hospitalized primarily for COVID-19” in the first 3 months of 2021, 31.4% were admitted to the ICU and 4.9% required invasive mechanical ventilation, according to Fiona P. Havers, MD, MHS, an epidemiologist for the CDC’s COVID-19 Response Team, and colleagues.
Since last March, the rate of COVID-19-related hospitalizations among adolescents aged 12 to 17 years — a group now fully eligible for vaccination — has been lower compared with adults but exceeds that of children aged 5 to 11 years. Still, CDC Director Rochelle P. Walensky, MD, MPH, expressed concern about the recent uptick in hospitalizations and urged parents to get their children vaccinated.
“I am deeply concerned by the numbers of hospitalized adolescents and saddened to see the number of adolescents who required treatment in ICUs or mechanical ventilation,” Walensky said in a statement. “Much of this suffering can be prevented.”
Havers and colleagues examined data from the Coronavirus Disease 2019-Associated Hospitalization Surveillance Network on adolescents hospitalized for COVID-19.
Between March 1, 2020, and April 24, 2021, the cumulative COVID-19-related hospitalization rate per 100,000 adolescents (49.9) was 12.5 times lower than the rate in adults (675.6), the data showed. It was comparable to rates among children aged 4 years or younger but higher than rates among children aged 5 to 11 years, Havers and colleagues reported.
Additionally, the researchers found that COVID-19 hospitalization rates from October to April were 2.5 to 3 times higher than influenza-associated hospitalization rates from the last three influenza seasons.
Of the 204 hospitalized adolescents included in the study, 52.5% were female, 31.4% were Hispanic or Latino, and 35.8% were Black, Havers and colleagues reported. Additionally, 70.6% had one or more underlying health condition, including obesity (35.8%), asthma (30.9%) and neurologic disorders (14.2%).