Linda NordlingScience’s COVID-19 reporting is supported by the Pulitzer Center.CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA—Living with HIV or active tuberculosis (TB) increases a person’s likelihood of dying from COVID-19, preliminary data from South Africa show.
However, the effect is small compared with other known risk factors such as old age and diabetes.South Africa has the world’s highest rates of HIV and TB infection.
To gauge their impact on COVID-19, scientists in South Africa’s Western Cape province analyzed outcomes for 12,987 patients with the disease.
After adjusting for other risk factors, they found HIV increased a COVID-19 patient’s death risk by a factor of 2.75, and active TB by a factor of 2.58.