Spouses Are Better Predictors of Severe COVID-19 Infection Than Siblings, New Data Reveal

A new study published in the International Journal of Epidemiology finds that shared living environments may play a greater role in severe COVID-19 than genetic factors.

Researchers analyzed data from nearly 84,000 twins and 33,000 spouses, finding that spouses were 3.6 times more likely to be hospitalized if their partner was also hospitalized. Seventy-one percent of hospitalized partners were admitted within five days of each other.

Genetic factors played a modest role in infection susceptibility during the pandemic’s third wave but showed no significant association with hospitalization, highlighting the importance of close contact and shared environments in severe illness. Read more from CIDRAP here.