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These preliminary data also demonstrate that severe illness leading to hospitalization, including ICU admission and death, can occur in adults of any age with COVID-19, according to the report.
About 38 percent of COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the United States were younger than 55, according to a new report of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
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The CDC report looked at COVID-19 cases in the United States from February 12 to March 16.
As of March 16, a total of 4,226 COVID-19 cases had been reported in the country, with reports increasing to 500 or more cases per day beginning March 14, said the report.
Among the 508 patients known to have been hospitalized, 38 percent were aged between 20 and 54, according to the report. Besides, 9 percent were aged over 85, 36 percent aged between 65 and 84, and 17 percent aged between 55 and 64.
According to the report, of all the patients, 53 percent of ICU admissions and 80 percent of deaths occurred among adults aged over 65, with the highest percentage of severe outcomes among persons aged over 85.
"These findings are similar to data from China, which indicated over 80 percent of deaths occurred among persons aged over 60," said the report.
Social distancing is recommended for all ages to slow the spread of the virus, protect the health care system, and help protect vulnerable older adults, said the report.
The number of COVID-19 cases in the United States has topped 10,755 as of 14:00 Eastern Standard Time Thursday, with 154 deaths, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.
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