University of Maryland has determined that patients with type II diabetes and a high body mass index are not only subject to high risk of complications and hospitalization due to COVID-19, but are also particularly vulnerable to coronavirus infection. This is reported in a press release on MedicalXpress, the results of scientific work are published in PLOS One.
Researchers analyzed the data of the British Bobank about 500 thousand participants over 40, comparing the health indicators from those who were sick with COVID-19, and those who remained healthy. It turned out that those people who had positive test results on COVID-19, with a greater probability suffering from obesity or type II diabetes. The rest had a high level of “good” cholesterol and had a healthy weight.
According to scientists, certain cardiometabolic factors, apparently, or protect a person from COVID-19 infection, or make a person more vulnerable to infection. However, the study does not give an accurate answer to the question of what can cause SARS-COV-2 infection. The results only indicate the importance of a healthy immune system to protect against COVID-19.