Older people have few young cells, making it harder for them to tolerate coronavirus. So the danger of infection for this age category was explained by the chief freelance geriatrician of the Ministry of Health, director of the Russian Gerontological Research and Clinical Center of the Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Olga Tkacheva, RIA Novosti reports.
Tkacheva explained that young, or "naive" cells can respond to the coronavirus. She added that COVID-19 is the first infection in human history that is significantly dependent on age.
The geriatrician pointed out that the immune system of older people in general responds poorly to infection and meeting with a new infectious agent is especially dangerous.
Earlier, Tkacheva said that older people need vaccination against coronavirus, as there is a high risk of a severe course of the infection. According to her, simultaneously with the immune system, other organs and systems of the body also age, the vessels and muscle of the heart become stiffer, which creates an environment for thrombosis, and the virus increases the activity of the blood coagulation system.
