Severe COVID-19 patients more likely to die in Africa than in any other region, study finds

COVID-19 patients in Africa who become critically ill are more likely to die than those in any other region of the world, according to a new study.

LONDON -- COVID-19 patients in Africa who become critically ill are more likely to die than those in any other region of the world, according to a new study. The report, published Thursday in the peer-reviewed medical journal "The Lancet," was based on data from 64 hospitals across 10 African nations -- Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Malawi, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria and South Africa -- between May and December 2020. "Our study is the first to give a detailed and comprehensive picture of what is happening to people who are severely ill with COVID-19 in Africa, with data from multiple countries and hospitals," said Bruce Biccard, who co-led the research and is an anesthesiologist and professor at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, the chief academic hospital of the University of Cape Town. "Sadly, it indicates that our ability to provide sufficient care is compromised by a shortage of critical care beds and limited resources within intensive care units," Biccard noted.