Thu 15 Jul 2021 01.00 EDT
People with learning disabilities in England are eight times more likely to die from Covid than the general population, according to research that highlights a âhidden calamityâ of the coronavirus crisis.
The study from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Oxford University and Public Health England found risks were particularly high for those with profound learning disabilities linked to Downâs syndrome and cerebral palsy. Among Covid patients with Downâs syndrome, for example, the risk of dying from the infection was 36 times higher than in the general population.
âThis is really stark. I was shocked at the increased death rates for people with learning disabilities and particularly for people with Downâs syndrome,â said Prof Hannah Kuper, director of the International Centre for Evidence in Disability at the LSHTM.