Excess deaths – the number of those dying above the average of the past five years – is a crucial metric for assessing the lethality of Covid-19. It measures the immediate toll, both direct and indirect, that the virus, SARS-CoV-2, has exacted.
Much has been said about the demographic trends of Covid-19. It has been widely reported that deaths are more common in males; more common in the elderly; and more common amongst those with an “underlying health condition”. But to what extent is this the case? And how are these variables associated with each other?
Leicester made demographic history as the first city in England where the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community is the majority. And it is making history as the first city in England to re-enter lockdown after a surge in persons testing positive for SARS-CoV-2. Can Leicester turn this reversal into a triumph for local public health by rigorously documenting its SARS-CoV-2 transmission networks, and by using investigatory scientific methods to make new discoveries about asymptomatic infections and infectiousness? These are testing times.
This comment concerns the most common reasons mortality has been undercounted during the novel coronavirus pandemic, to raise awareness in the general public and help researchers to analyze mortality data with caution. Different countries’ different reporting systems may have different problems; no data are flawless. This comment offers six general issues that apply to most countries, before proceeding to focus on the peculiarities of Covid-19.
Social distancing is important in controlling the spread of Covid-19. This strategy has proven to be highly effective in flattening the curve of new cases/deaths. In this article I discuss the spatial implications of England's social distancing policy in relation to the school setting and, in particular, how this might apply to seating configurations in schools as the Covid-19 lockdown, implemented from 23 March 2020, is gradually eased.
