By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — As part of the Reno County Local Emergency Preparedness Committee meeting Friday morning in Hutchinson, Reno County Health Department Director Nic Baldetti clarified that the most at risk population at this point to die of a COVID-19 infection of the lungs is much the same that would be at risk from any infection of that organ.
"The at-risk populations for which we know COVID-19 seems to be affecting, in this case is the elderly population," Baldetti said. "It's the same population that tends to be at risk for many other upper respiratory infections that have been around for quite awhile."
For clarity, elderly was defined a little more specifically.
"The primary population that is most at risk is the 70 plus with at least one comorbidity," Baldetti said. "We were just looking at a paper this morning in which they are beginning to try and distill down certain comorbidities."
In medicine, comorbidity is the presence of one or more additional conditions co-occurring with a primary condition. That means those people are at higher risk of death, but right now anyone could infect anyone else. Baldetti said it would be fair to say that we are still on the front side of this curve and we don't know where the top is.