He was released from confinement on Thursday. In addition, the mayor said, this was "truly extraordinary" and that such a recovery from a man, more than a hundred years old, would give "hope for the future." The city also expressed how an old man has instilled in people that "even at 101 years, the future is not written."
This old man was born in 1919, the same period as the Spanish Flu, the pandemic that killed approximately 30 to 50 million people globally. He grew up between World War I and WWII and now, he turned out be the oldest patient to recover from COVID-19 in Italy.
This was reported recently by the Italian media. Incidentally, this most recent pandemic is not new to Mr. P. As mentioned, he was born in 1919, the same period when the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic was inflicting his town. During that time, the said pandemic took an approximated number of "600,000 Italian," but he was spared.
A Century Later
After 100 years, Mr. P. would find himself confined in a hospital, seemingly, returning to where he started then. After his hospital confinement, the health workers were rather hopeless as COVID-19 would hit people more than 65 years old the hardest.
Although Lisi said, once the oldest patient started to recover fast, he turned out to be the story every person in the hospital would like to talk about. The deputy mayor added, "Everyone saw hope for the future" of the whole world in a a-hundred-and-one-year-old person's recovery.
Upon his recovery, the Spanish Flu and WWII survivor was released from the hospital. And, as Lisi strikingly explained, Mr. P's family took him home the night before, as mentioned, to teach everyone a lesson that even at more than a hundred years, the future has "yet to be written."
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An Inspiring Story to Hold
It may indeed, be a struggle to hang on to hope, considering the negative news spreading from different directions. However, the story of this 101-year-old man is certainly something to behold. Mr. P's case might be among the rarest of the many, especially amidst the current pandemic.
His survival is undeniably remarkable, especially with the high rates of fatality for older people infected with COVID-19. Based on Italy's National Institute of Health's report, almost 86 percent of deaths in Italy were patients who are more than 70 years old.
Moreover, as the US, Italy, and China all had confirmed COVID-19 figures soaring around 80,000, Italy saw considerably more deaths, over 8,000 than the 1,000 deaths recorded in the US, and in China, with more than 3,000 fatalities recorded in China.
And lastly, the age distribution of the population in Italy may be one factor-this country has the second-oldest population worldwide, with 23 percent of Italian nationals who are more than 65 years old.
