UK death rate of coronavirus patients in intensive care tops 50 per cent, study finds

The death rate of coronavirus patients admitted to intensive care has topped 50 per cent, the latest figures show.

A study found that more than half of the sample of intensive care patients died due to the killer bug while the other 50 per cent were discharged.

In comparison, just 22.4 per cent of patients admitted to intensive care with viral pneumonia between 2017 and 2019 died of the disease.

The shocking statistics come as the UK’s coronavirus death toll soared to 4,313 with more than 41,900 confirmed cases. 

The Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre (ICNARC) found that of 690 coronavirus patients in intensive care with known outcomes, 346 died.

Of the 346 deaths, 259 were male. The remaining 344 were discharged. 

A sample of 2,249 coronavirus patients was used by the ICNARC. The remaining 1,559 patients are still in critical care.

A study found that more than half of the sample of intensive care patients died due to the killer bug while the other 50 per cent were discharged. Pictured: An paramedic outside St Thomas’ Hospital in London

The patients had a median age of 61 and a total of 73 per cent of those admitted to intensive care units with coronavirus were male.

The figures come from 286 NHS intensive care and combined intensive care and high-dependency units in England, Wales and Northern Ireland as of midday on Friday.

Some specialist and non-NHS critical care units also submitted data. 

The study revealed 62.9 per cent of coronavirus patients in critical care had to be mechanically ventilated in the first 24 hours.

The largest concentration of patients was in London, with 949 being managed across three London Operational Delivery Networks – the system of co-ordinating patient care across the capital.

The shocking statistics come as the UK’s coronavirus death toll soars to 4,313 with more than 41,900 confirmed cases. Pictured: An ambulance leaves a London hospital

The data showed that the 2,249 cases in the sample, 1,899 were able to live without daily assistance, and only 151 had previously been diagnosed with a severe life-threatening or life-limiting illness (co-morbidity).

Of those who died in critical care, only 41 had a previously diagnosed co-morbidity.

Age was one of the biggest risk factors – 175 people who died in critical care were above 70, while 142 were aged between 50 and 69.

Only 29 of the deaths were of people aged between 16 and 49.