China’s health commission today released the most complete details to date about the 17 confirmed deaths from the disease. An examination of the information provided by the government about the 17 reported deaths show a disease that has thus far largely killed older men, many of whom had underlying health problems.
Most had gone to the hospital with a fever and a cough, though at least three did not have fevers when they were admitted, according to the health commission’s statement.
The victims include 13 men and four women. All were identified only by their last names. The youngest was a 48-year-old woman, Yin, who died on Monday, more than a month after her symptoms were first recorded. The oldest cases were two 89-year-old men who died on Saturday and Sunday.
Many had underlying conditions like cirrhosis of the liver, hypertension, diabetes and Parkinson’s disease.
Read more: Coronavirus Deaths Are So Far Mostly Older Men, Many With Previous Health Issues – New York Times
Editor’s note: This article was published in the early days of what became termed the COVID-19 pandemic, while the pathogen was still referred to as a novel coronavirus (nCoV), and a Public health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) had not yet been declared.