The COVID-19 syndemic: a perfect storm for the life expectancy of the most disadvantaged Americans.

ABSTRACT:

Background

To explore the syndemic nature of the COVID-19 pandemic by identifying which subpopulations in the United States (US) suffered the greatest losses in life expectancy (LE) in 2020 and 2021, and to which extent these losses can be attributed to COVID-19 and 'other' causes of death.

Methods

We analysed individual death records for 2018-2021 from the National Vital Statistics System and population counts from the American Community Survey. Life table and continuous change decomposition analyses were used to quantify cause-/.specific contributions to changes in LE over time in population subgroups defined by sex, educational attainment, and race/ethnicity.

Results

From 2019 to 2020, educational differences in LE (high minus low education) increased substantially

SUBMITTER: Probst C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12098261 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature