The new official global death rate from the novel coronavirus is 3.4 percent, higher than previous figures of about 2 percent.
The coronavirus outbreak that occurred in Wuhan, China has killed more than 3,100 people and infected nearly 93,000 people as of Tuesday. The virus causes a disease known as COVID-19.
Speaking at a media briefing, World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus noted that the death rate is much higher than that of seasonal flu, which kills about 0.1 percent of those infected.
The mortality rate is likely to change further as more cases are confirmed, although experts predict the death rate will decline in the long term as milder cases of COVID-19 are likely to go undiagnosed.
“There is another whole cohort that is either asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic,” Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in a briefing last month.
“We will see a decrease in the overall mortality rate.”
“It is a unique virus with unique characteristics.”
Tedros highlighted the differences between the new coronavirus and other infectious diseases such as MERS, SARS and the flu. He said the data suggests COVID-19 is not transmitted as effectively as the flu, which can be spread widely by people who are infected but are not yet showing symptoms.
He added, however, that COVID-19 caused a 'more serious illness' than seasonal flu, and explained that people around the world have developed immunity to influenza over time, due to the novelty of COVID-19, most people are susceptible to infection.
Tedros said last week that the death rate from the disease may also differ depending on where the patient is diagnosed and treated.
He added that people with mild cases of the disease recover in about two weeks, but for serious cases it may take three to six weeks.
Elderly patients are at greatest risk.
A patient's risk of dying from COVID-19 varies depending on several factors, including where they are being treated, their age and health status.
Cases of COVID-19 have been reported in at least 76 countries, with the vast majority in China.
A study last month at the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention found the virus most severely infects older people with pre-existing health problems.
COVID-19 mortality rate by age. (Shayanne Gal / Business Insider)
The findings suggest that the chances of dying from the disease increase with age.
Notably, the study found that patients aged 10 to 19 had the same chance of dying from COVID-19 as patients aged 20 to 30, but the disease was much more fatal in people aged 50 and older.
The study found that about 80 percent of COVID-19 cases are mild, and experts believe that many cases of mild illness have gone unreported because some people do not go to a doctor or hospital for treatment.
This article was published by Business Insider.
Sources: Photo: Chung Sung-Jun / Getty Images
