County level analysis of age and comorbidities on COVID-19 incidence and mortality in the United States

Keywords: coronavirus, environmental hazards, geographically weighted regression, medical geography, public health
Session Type: Virtual Paper Abstract
Day: Saturday
Session Start / End Time: 2/26/2022 05:20 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/26/2022 06:40 PM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 23

Abstract

A county level assessment of coronavirus disease in relation to age demographics and comorbidities is carried out to assess areas that are most vulnerable to the virus during the early stages of the pandemic in 2020. This type of research is timely due to existing data that identify the elderly and those with underlying conditions as more likely to experience adverse outcomes from coronavirus infection. The analysis was conducted using geographically weighted regression to analyze the impacts of age, heart disease, obesity, and diabetes on coronavirus incidence and death-case ratios during two peak periods, March-April and June-July 2020. Standardized residual maps show that a majority of counties recorded incidence rates within the range of 2.5 standard deviations of the mean with outliers emerging in the southwest and interior of the country. Positive coefficients associated with the above 75 age cohort were recorded in the New England, north central, and southeast regions for incidence rates in peak 1, while low or negative effects were observed in the south central and western regions. These trends were reversed when death-case ratios were analyzed. Prevalence of diabetes had a positive effect on coronavirus death-case ratios in the northeast, south, and southwest regions during both peak periods. The findings reveal regional and temporal differences in coronavirus incidence and mortality among the elderly and those with underlying conditions. The framework adopted in this research supports the future investigation of how demographic and social factors influence the spread of coronavirus disease.