Prof. Ioannidis presented an excellent summary on the global perspective of the COVID-19 epidemiology.1 He underlined that his simulations for estimated global deaths during a full cycle of the COVID-19 pandemic over 5 years are for illustrative purposes and should be interpreted with great caution. The estimated COVID-19 deaths during such a full cycle of the pandemic ranged from 1.58 to 8.76 millions over 5 years. The model for the worst case scenario with 8.76 million deaths assumes a population infection rate (PIR) of 60%, the frequently quoted PIR for "heard immunity".1 Being well aware of the limitations and variance around such estimates, I see an imperative need to put the COVID-19 pandemic into perspective with the overall burden of diseases. Regarding global deaths per year, it has been estimated that about 6.4 millions can be attributed to smoking, about 9 millions (probably much more in 2020) to hunger and hunger-related diseases, and roughly 10 millions to consequences of high blood pressure.
Letter to the Editor Re: Global perspective of COVID-19 epidemiology for a full-cycle pandemic.