Urban-rural disparities in COVID-19 hospitalisations and mortality: A population-based study on national surveillance data from Germany and Italy
Assche SBV, Ferraccioli F, Riccetti N, Gomez-Ramirez J, Ghio D, Stilianakis NI (2024)
Publication Type: Journal article
Publication year: 2024
Journal
Book Volume: 19
Pages Range: e0301325-
Journal Issue: 5
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0301325
Abstract
PURPOSE: Recent literature has highlighted the overlapping contribution of demographic characteristics and spatial factors to urban-rural disparities in SARS-CoV-2 transmission and outcomes. Yet the interplay between individual characteristics, hospitalisation, and spatial factors for urban-rural disparities in COVID-19 mortality have received limited attention. METHODS: To fill this gap, we use national surveillance data collected by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and we fit a generalized linear model to estimate the association between COVID-19 mortality and the individuals' age, sex, hospitalisation status, population density, share of the population over the age of 60, and pandemic wave across urban, intermediate and rural territories. FINDINGS: We find that in what type of territory individuals live (urban-intermediate-rural) accounts for a significant difference in their probability of dying given SARS-COV-2 infection. Hospitalisation has a large and positive effect on the probability of dying given SARS-CoV-2 infection, but with a gradient across urban, intermediate and rural territories. For those living in rural areas, the risk of dying is lower than in urban areas but only if hospitalisation was not needed; while for those who were hospitalised in rural areas the risk of dying was higher than in urban areas. CONCLUSIONS: Together with individuals' demographic characteristics (notably age), hospitalisation has the largest effect on urban-rural disparities in COVID-19 mortality net of other individual and regional characteristics, including population density and the share of the population over 60.
Involved external institutions
Université de Montréal
Canada (CA)
European Commission - Joint Research Centre (JRC)
Netherlands (NL)
Toronto Metropolitan University / Ryerson University
Canada (CA)
Canada (CA)
European Commission - Joint Research Centre (JRC)
Netherlands (NL)
Toronto Metropolitan University / Ryerson University
Canada (CA)
How to cite
APA:
Assche, S.B.V., Ferraccioli, F., Riccetti, N., Gomez-Ramirez, J., Ghio, D., & Stilianakis, N.I. (2024). Urban-rural disparities in COVID-19 hospitalisations and mortality: A population-based study on national surveillance data from Germany and Italy. PLoS ONE, 19(5), e0301325-. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0301325
MLA:
Assche, Simona Bignami Van, et al. "Urban-rural disparities in COVID-19 hospitalisations and mortality: A population-based study on national surveillance data from Germany and Italy." PLoS ONE 19.5 (2024): e0301325-.
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