Rochester Twins Affected Differently By Coronavirus

ROCHESTER, MI — Two identical twins in Rochester tested positive for the coronavirus, but how the respiratory illness affected them couldn't have been more different.

Kimberly and Kelly Standard, 35, checked themselves into the hospital early last spring and while Kelly was released from the hospital short of a week after arriving, Kimberly had a much longer stay, according to a story published Monday by The New York Times.

Kimberly spent nearly a month in critical condition, the Times reported. She spent much of her recovery breathing through tubes and in and out of shock. Kimberly had to relearn how to speak, walk, chew and swallow.

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“I want to know," Kelly told The New York Times, "why did she have Covid worse than me?”

The report details how several sets of twins have been impacted in varying ways by the coronavirus. It is another example of how much is unknown about COVID-19, which has been confirmed in 538,377 people in Michigan since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020. Of those confirmed cases, state health officials said 13,824 people have died from complications with COVID-19 while more than 442,000 people have recovered from the illness.

Adding to the unknown, Michigan on Saturday reported that a new coronavirus variant had been discovered in Michigan after a woman in Washtenaw County traveled to the United Kingdom, where this variant originated.