Virus incidents that surged in young adults. The elderly were then attacked.

Coronavirus infections surged among young people when millennials mingled in bars and restaurants during the summer and students returned to college campuses.

According to the survey, the incidence of the virus was highest in adults aged 20-29 years from June to August. Published on Wednesday Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Young adults accounted for more than 20% of all confirmed cases.

But the infections didn’t stop there, researchers found: young adults may also have seeded a new wave of infections between middle-aged and older Americans, and then among older Americans. ..

New data show that outbreaks associated with parties, bars, dormitories, and other crowded areas are dangerous not only to existing twenties, but also to the more vulnerable Americans who are more likely to come into contact. ..

University campuses are a particular threat. As of early September, more than 88,000 coronavirus infections were reported on approximately 1,200 campuses, according to a database maintained by the New York Times.

At a parliamentary hearing on Wednesday, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned against sending college students experiencing outbreaks to their homes.

The college “must be able to accommodate students in the facility. Perhaps they should not spread between the students’ bodies in different dormitories or floors,” Dr. Fouch said of the infected students. Said. “But don’t send them home to their community because they can infect the community.”

Millennials are at high risk of infection from occupational exposure, as they make up the majority of workers interacting with the masses in retail stores, the food service industry, and other front-line jobs such as childcare and public transport. There is also.

However, new studies also suggest that it may be less likely to adhere to recommended mitigation measures, such as distancing social distances and avoiding large gatherings.

Dr. Tom Ingressby, director of the Health and Safety Center at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said:

“We need to turn this around,” said Dr. Ingressby. “Leaders need to better communicate with young people how essential they are to control this epidemic.”

He also states that the pattern is “further evidence that the concept proposed by some people who cocoon older people and allow young people to get sick in order not to have bad consequences does not work.” It was.

Although rare, young people become severely ill and not only die from the virus, but also cause a chain of infections in the elderly population. “Young people and old people are all connected in our world,” said Dr. Ingressby.

Julia L. Marcus, an assistant professor of artificial medicine at Harvard Medical School, said young people need help and support to find ways to stay socially connected during a pandemic.

She warned against demonizing young people. Many of them engage in important public work living in intergenerational households that are exposed to the virus and are not easily isolated.

“The moral anger about our participation in the party cannot distract us from addressing the professional and household risks that continue to cause this pandemic,” she said.

The CDC report confirmed positive tests, emergency department visits, and viral cases in all 50 states and the District of Columbia from May to August.

The incidence of cases was the highest among people in their twenties, but researchers found that the proliferation of cases in this age group was followed by an increase in infection among people over the age of 60.

In the south, a clear pattern emerged as the number of cases increased sharply in the summer. Within 9 days after the number of cases in their 20s and 30s increased, the number of cases aged 60 and over also increased.

In states like Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, the infection was more continuous. The increase in the age group from 20 to 39 years showed an increase after 15 days in those over 60 years, following the increase in 9 days from 40 to 59 years.

Researchers said young adults are most likely to play an important role in the spread of the virus, which can occur before they know they have been infected and before they develop symptoms.

“It is necessary to strictly adhere to community mitigation strategies and personal preventive actions by young adults,” the report concluded.

“My message to young adults is to understand that they can play a role in communicating Covid-19 to family, friends and others in the community, and our ability to contain the pandemic. Plays an important role in, “said Tegan K. Boehmer, an epidemiologist and lead author of CDC research.

Many young adults may have a mild infection, so they may be “unaware that they are infected or contagious,” especially before the onset of symptoms. Dr. Boehmer said. “They may have unknowingly sent Covid to others during their pre-symptom or asymptomatic condition.”

Young adults are not immune to the virus itself. According to CDC statistics, the majority of deaths from coronavirus are elderly, but more than 5,000 young adults between the ages of 25 and 44 die from the virus, and many are hospitalized for serious illness. ..

Another study of college infections, which has not yet undergone peer review, analyzed infection trends in colleges and towns with universities. Decided to reopen school It was associated with an increase in viral cases in the county where the school was located, but only when the university resumed face-to-face lessons.

Martin Anderson, a health economist and assistant professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, said:

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Other authors of this paper were from Indiana University Bloomington, University of Washington, and Davidson College.

Dr. Anderson said many college students gathered to live on or near the campus when there was little guidance, but did not promote an increase in cases in those counties.

About two weeks after the university opened, a rapid increase in cases occurred. Dr. Anderson and his colleagues reported a higher increase in schools where students were interviewed directly from areas where the virus was endemic.