Chronic Health Conditions Account for Majority of COVID-19 Hospitalizations

Long suspected but now confirmed by a new study, severe illness and hospitalizations for COVID-19 are linked to four common medical conditions—type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and heart failure.  All these conditions impair the body’s immune system.

A research team led by Tufts University developed a statistical model incorporating data on the association of these underlying conditions with COVID-19 hospitalizations in the US. Also included were national data on age, sex, and race/ethnicity. The study was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Out of the 900,000 COVID-19 hospitalizations that occurred through November 2020, 30% were attributable to obesity, 26% to hypertension, 21% to diabetes, and 12% to heart failure. The model calculated that 64% of hospitalizations would not have occurred had these conditions not been present.  

In many instances, hospitalized COVID-19 patients had more than one condition. Age played a role in diabetes, heart failure, and hypertension hospitalizations. Older people with these conditions were more likely to end up in hospital, whereas obesity carried a similar risk for all age groups. 

The research confirmed findings of other studies showing that Black and other minority communities were disproportionately affected by COVID-19. For all four conditions, Black adults had the highest rate of hospitalizations.

Close to three in four adult Americans are overweight or obese while almost half have prediabetes or diabetes. One of the lead authors of the Tufts study, Meghan O’Hearn, says the findings point to the need for medical providers to promote lifestyle measures such as diet and exercise to improve cardiometabolic health.