If you know someone who has died with Covid-19...

[saylor]

What was their circumstance? I'm curious to see what the "real" picture looks like.

I know of two people:

1. My friends father who was in his mid-70s but in ailing health and my understanding is he had more than one underlying health condition. He probably had another 5 years in him though.

1. My friends grandmother who contracted it in her care home. No underlying health conditions, but she was 99.

3 men in their early 60s, no underlying conditions, of Indian origin & lived locally to me. There was also a young man (early 30s, DH's colleague, Bengali, no underlying conditions) who was very touch and go, spent many weeks in ICU & missed the birth of his child but thankfully pulled through. He hasn't fully recovered yet though. They all caught it before the lockdown.

I know of 8 people in my mums care home who have died. All with underlying health conditions obviously. Heartbreaking for all, including those left behind as her wing is now like the Marie Celeste and she gets far less social stimulation which doesn't do her dementia or mental health any good and I'm months off being able to visit I would imagine.

Best friends dad, 86, masses of health conditions.

Know of 2 other people who had it and recovered

Second cousin 55 fit, no underlying health conditions.

To those who insist that anyone who has died without underlying conditions must have had them and just not known I’m afraid it’s just not true. There are likely certain normal genetic variations that might increase risk however but these are part of normal healthy physiology under any other circumstances. Stating that they must have had an undiagnosed condition is inaccurate and offensive and plays to the assumption that only the ‘weak’ die from this. Risk is greater in those with certain illnesses but is not zero for others.

My MIL died with a clinical diagnosis of Covid - her PCR swab was negative but the consultant said that these are only 65% accurate so was confident in his clinical diagnosis. No PMs being done so we can’t verify either way.

She’d been diagnosed with an unusual type of cancer at the start of this year, but she also had rheumatoid arthritis, a thyroid problem & a high BMI. The cancer meant that her immune system was virtually nil so she stood no chance against even a very ‘normal’ infection, let alone something like Covid.