Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Epidemiology of the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Update

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Statistical Approaches for Epidemiology

  • 376 Accesses

Abstract

Due to the emergence of a large, deadly pandemic of COVID-19, it is important to document the worldwide impact of the pandemic in terms of morbidity and mortality. This chapter discusses the infectiousness, pathogenicity, and virulence of SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19. This chapter provides a comparative analysis of the prevailing variants, such as delta and omicron. Epidemiologic information also includes risk factors, the impact of the pandemic on mental health, and complications, including long-COVID symptoms. The chapter provides special attention to the assessment of the disease burden in a country by using a recently revised formula of PYLL. Because of the weaning of protection from the previous monovalent vaccines and the introduction of bivalent vaccines, the chapter discusses the current data on vaccine effectiveness.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Worldometer. Coronavirus. Available at: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/. Accessed 5 Feb 2023.

  2. Hu B, Guo H, Zhou P, et al. Characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19. Nat Rev Microbiol. 2021;19:141–54. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41579-020-00459-7.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Petrosillo N, Viceconte G, Ergonul O, Ippolito G, Petersen E. COVID-19, SARS and MERS: are they closely related? Clin Microbiol Infect. 2020;26(6):729–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmi.2020.03.026.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. COVID-19: variants of the virus. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/variants/index.html. Accessed 5 Jan 2023.

  5. Lewnard JA, Hong VX, Patel MM, Kahn R, Lipsitch M, Tartof SY. Clinical outcomes associated with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant and BA.1/BA.1.1 or BA.2 subvariant infection in Southern California. Nat Med. 2022;28(9):1933–43. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-022-01887-z.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. Yancy CW. COVID-19 and African Americans. JAMA. 2020;323(19):1891–2. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.6548.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Zhang L, Mcleod ST, Vargas R, Liu X, Young DK, Dobbs TE. Subgroup comparison of COVID-19 case and mortality with associated factors in Mississippi: findings from analysis of the first four months of public data. J Biomed Res. 2020;34(6):446–57. https://doi.org/10.7555/JBR.34.20200135.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  8. Khamis F, Al Awaidy S, Ba’Omar M, et al. The impact of demographic, clinical characteristics and the various COVID-19 variant types on all-cause mortality: a case-series retrospective study. Diseases. 2022;10:100. https://doi.org/10.3390/diseases10040100.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. New CDC data illuminate youth mental health threats during the COVID-19 pandemic. 2022. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0331-youth-mental-health-covid-19.html#print. Accessed 4 Jan 2023.

  10. Jones J, Mitra AK, Bhuiyan AR. Impact of COVID-19 on mental health of adolescents: a systematic review. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021;18:2470. https://doi.org/10.3399/ijerph18052470.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  11. Islam MS, Ferdous MZ, Islam US, Mosaddek ASM, Potenza MN, Pardhan S. Treatment, persistent symptoms, and depression in people infected with COVID-19 in Bangladesh. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021;18:1453. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18041453.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  12. Duan L, Shao X, Wang Y, Huang Y, Miao J, Yang X, Zhu G. An investigation of mental health status of children and adolescents in China during the outbreak of COVID-19. J Affect Disord. 2020;275:112–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2020.06.029.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  13. Raveendran AV, Jayadevan R, Sashidharan B. Long COVID: an overview. Diabetes Metab Syndr Clin Res Rev. 2021;15(3):869–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2021.04.007.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. CDC. Long COVID or post-COVID conditions. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/long-term-effects/index.html#:~:text=Some%20people%2C%20especially%20those%20who,kidney%2C%20skin%2C%20and%20brain. Accessed on 4 Jan 2023.

  15. Carfì A, Bernabei R, Landi F, et al. Persistent symptoms in patients after acute COVID-19. JAMA. 2020;324(6):603–5. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.12603.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  16. Desforges M, Gurdasani D, Hamdy A, Leonardi AJ. Uncertainty around the long-term implications of COVID-19. Pathogens. 2021;10:1267. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens10101267.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  17. Venkataramani V, Winkler F. Cognitive deficits in long Covod-19. N Engl J Med. 2022;382:1813–5. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMcibr2210069.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. World Health Organization. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19): virus evolution. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/sars-cov-2-evolution. Accessed 15 Feb 2023.

  19. Katella K. Omicron, Delta, Alpha, and more: what to know about the Coronavirus variants. Yale Medicine; 2023. Available at: https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/covid-19-variants-of-concern-omicron. Accessed 15 Feb 2023.

  20. Davis-Gardner ME, Lai L, Wali B, Samaha H, Solis D, Lee M, et al. Neutralization against BA.2.75.2, BQ.1.1, and XBB from mRNA Bivalent Booster. N Engl J Med. 2023;388(2):183–5. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMc2214293.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. World Health Organization. Disability-Adjusted Life Year (DALY). Available at: https://www.who.int/data/gho/indicator-metadata-registry/imr-details/158#:~:text=Definition%3A-,One%20DALY%20represents%20the%20loss%20of%20the%20equivalent%20of%20one,health%20condition%20in%20a%20population. Accessed 15 Feb 2023.

  22. Grandjean P, Bellanger M. Calculation of the disease burden associated with environmental chemical exposures: application of toxicological information in health economic estimation. Environ Health. 2017;16:123.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  23. Egunsola O, Raubenheimer J, Buckley N. Variability in the burden of disease estimates with or without age weighting and discounting: a methodological study. BMJ Open. 2019;9:e027825.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  24. Vienonen MA, Jousilahti PJ, Mackiewicz K, Oganov RG, Pisaryk VM, Denissov GR, et al. Preventable premature deaths (PYLL) in northern dimension partnership countries 2003–13. Eur J Pub Health. 2019;29:626–30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Canadian Institute for Health Information. Potential years of life lost: international comparisons [product release]. Accessed 14 Feb 2023.

    Google Scholar 

  26. Maximova K, Rozen S, Springett J, Stachenko S. The use of potential years of life lost for monitoring premature mortality from chronic diseases: Canadian perspectives. Can J Public Health. 2016;107:e202–4.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  27. Romeder JM, McWhinnie JR. Potential years of life lost between ages 1 and 70: an indicator of premature mortality for health planning. Int J Epidemiol. 1977;6:143–51.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Mitra AK, Payton M, Kabir N, Whitehead A, Ragland KN, Brown A. Potential years of life lost due to COVID-19 in the United States, Italy, and Germany: an old formula with newer ideas. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17:4392.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  29. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1191568/reported-deaths-from-covid-by-age-us/

  30. US Census. Bureau. Available at: https://www.census.gov/. Accessed 28 Dec 2022.

  31. National Institutes of Health. COVID-19 treatment guidelines. Available at: https://www.covid19treatmentguidelines.nih.gov/management/clinical-management-of-adults/clinical-management-of-adults-summary/?utm_source=site&utm_medium=home&utm_campaign=highlights. Accessed 15 Feb 2023.

  32. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. COVID-19 treatment and management. Available at: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/your-health/treatments-for-severe-illness.html. Accessed 15 Feb 2023.

  33. Infectious Diseases Society of America. IDSA guidelines on the treatment and management of patients with COVID-19. Available at: https://www.idsociety.org/practice-guideline/covid-19-guideline-treatment-and-management/#OverviewofCOVID-19TreatmentGuidelinesSummaryTable. Accessed 15 Feb 2023.

  34. Altarawneh HN, Chemaitelly H, Ayoub HH, et al. Effects of previous infection and vaccination on symptomatic omicron infections. N Engl J Med. 2022;387:21–34. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2203965.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Barouch DH. Covid-19 vaccines – immunity, variants, boosters. N Engl J Med. 2022;387:1011–22.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. U.S. Food & Drug Administration. Covid-19 bivalent vaccine boosters. Available at: https://www.fda.gov/emergency-preparedness-and-response/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/covid-19-bivalent-vaccine-boosters. Accessed 15 Feb 2023.

  37. Link-Gelles R, Ciesla AA, Roper LE, et al. Early estimates of bivalent mRNA booster dose vaccine effectiveness in preventing symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection attributable to Omicron BA.5– and XBB/XBB.1.5–related sublineages among immunocompetent adults — increasing community access to testing program, United States, December 2022–January 2023. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2023;72:119–24. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7205e1.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS, USA

    Amal K. Mitra

Authors
  1. Amal K. Mitra
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Amal K. Mitra .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS, USA

    Amal K. Mitra

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Mitra, A.K. (2024). Epidemiology of the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Update. In: Mitra, A.K. (eds) Statistical Approaches for Epidemiology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-41784-9_23

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-41784-9_23

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-41783-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-41784-9

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation