- SARS-CoV-2 viral load predicts COVID-19 mortality. Viral load in COVID-19 might correlate with infectivity, disease phenotype, morbidity, and mortality. This is the first to report on SARS-CoV-2 viral load at diagnosis as an independent predictor of mortality in a large hospitalised cohort (n=1145). https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanres/article/piis2213-2600(20)30354-4/fulltext 8 comments science