Examining and investigating the impact of demographic characteristics and chronic diseases on mortality of COVID-19: Retrospective study

Factors Affecting Hospitalization Length and in-Hospital Death Due to COVID-19 Infection in Saudi Arabia: A Single-Center Retrospective Analysis

Background

The emerging COVID-19 coronavirus disease has widely spread, causing a serious worldwide pandemic. Disease severity and mortality risk can be predicted using an analysis of COVID-19 clinical characteristics. Finding out what influences patients' hospitalization length and in-hospital mortality is crucial for decision-making and planning for emergencies. The goal of this study is to identify the factors that influence hospital stay length and in-hospital death due to COVID-19 infection.

Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted from August to October 2020 and included 630 patients with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 infection. Using odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI), a multivariable logistic regression model was used to assess the variables that are linked to longer hospital stays and in-hospital deaths.

Results

Most patients were male (64.3%), and most were older than 40 years (81.4%). The mean length of hospital stay (LoHS) was 10.4±11.6 days. The overall death rate among these COVID-19 cases was 14.3%. Non-survivors were older, had more comorbidities, had prolonged LoHS with increased ICU admission rates and mechanical ventilation usage, and had a more severe condition than survivors. ICU admission, low serum albumin, and elevated LDH levels were associated with longer LoHS, while ICU admission, DM, and respiratory diseases as comorbidities, total leukocytic count, and serum albumin were predictors of mortality.

Conclusion

Longer LoHS due to COVID-19 infection was linked to ICU admission, low serum albumin, and elevated LDH levels, while the independent predictors of in-hospital death were ICU admission, DM, and respiratory diseases as comorbidities, total leukocytic count, and serum albumin.

Impact of insomnia on mental status among chronic disease patients during Covid-19 pandemic

Background

The Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) 2019 pandemic had a serious impact on the mental health of individuals globally. A lack of psychological well-being on the part of individuals with chronic diseases might increase the risk of developing symptoms such as insomnia, depression, and anxiety.

Objectives

The aim of this study is to evaluate the prevalence of insomnia, depression, and anxiety among patients with chronic disease during the Covid-19 pandemic in Oman.

Methods

This is a web-based cross-sectional study conducted between June 2021 and September 2021. Insomnia was assessed by using the Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), while depression and anxiety were measured using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS).

Results

Of the 922 chronic disease patients who participated, 77% (n = 710) reported insomnia, while the mean score for the ISI was11.38 (SD 5.82). Depression and anxiety were prevalent among the participants with 47% and 63% respectively. The participants' mean with regard to the sleep duration items was 7.04 (SD = 1.59) hours per night, whereas the mean in terms of sleep latency was 38.18 minutes (SD = 31.81). Logistic regression analysis revealed that insomnia was positively associated with depression and anxiety.

Conclusions

This study demonstrated that chronic disease patients had a high prevalence of insomnia during the Covid-19 pandemic. Psychological support is recommended in order to help such patients reduce the level of insomnia. Furthermore, a routine assessment of levels of insomnia, depression and anxiety is essential, in order to help identify appropriate intervention and management measures.

A joint Bayesian spatiotemporal risk prediction model of COVID-19 incidence, IC admission, and death with application to Sweden

The three closely related COVID-19 outcomes of incidence, intensive care (IC) admission and death, are commonly modelled separately leading to biased estimation of the parameters and relatively poor forecasts. This paper presents a joint spatiotemporal model of the three outcomes based on weekly data that is used for risk prediction and identification of hotspots. The paper applies a pure spatiotemporal model consisting of structured and unstructured spatial and temporal effects and their interaction capturing the effects of the unobserved covariates. The pure spatiotemporal model limits the data requirements to the three outcomes and the population at risk per spatiotemporal unit. The empirical study for the 21 Swedish regions for the period 1 January 2020-4 May 2021 confirms that the joint model predictions outperform the separate model predictions. The fifteen-week-ahead spatiotemporal forecasts (5 May-11 August 2021) show a significant decline in the relative risk of COVID-19 incidence, IC admission, death and number of hotspots.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00168-022-01191-1.

THE IMPORTANCE OF INFLAMMATORY MARKERS IN PREDICTION OF MORTALITY IN COVID-19 PATIENTS

ÖZET GİRİŞ: Çin’de 2019 Aralık ayı sonunda ortaya çıkan COVID-19 kısa sürede tüm dünyaya yayılarak Dünya Sağlık Örgütü tarafından 11 Mart 2020’de pandemi olarak kabul edilmiştir. Pandemi hala değişen varyantlarıyla ve vaka sayılarıyla güncelliğini korumaktadır. Bu çalışmada COVID-19 tanılı yatan hastalarda 1. ve 5. gün bakılan hematolojik, inflamatuvar ve biyokimyasal belirteçlerin mortaliteyi öngörmede önemini belirlemeyi amaçladık. GEREÇ ve YÖNTEM: Araştırma retrospektif ve kesitsel çalışma olarak tasarlanmıştır. Çalışmaya 1 Kasım 2020-30 Nisan 2021 tarihleri arasında Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam Üniversitesi Hastanesi’ne COVID-19 şüpheli semptomları ile başvuran COVID-19 RT-PCR testi ile tanısı doğrulanarak yatışı yapılan 18 yaş üstü 200 hasta dahil edilmiştir. Hastaların yaş, cinsiyet, eşlik eden komorbid hastalıkları, 1. ve 5. gün laboratuvar parametreleri ve sonlanım durumları kaydedildi. Hastalar taburcu ve ölen şeklinde iki gruba ayrıldı. BULGULAR: Çalışmaya alınan 200 hastanın %75’i (n=150) taburcu olan, %25’i ise (n=50) 28 gün içinde ölen hastalardan oluşmaktaydı. Hastaların %63.5 (n=127) erkek, %36.5’i (n=73) kadındı. Hastaların yaş ortalaması 63±17.2 yıldı. Hastaların %50.5’i hafif, %31’i orta, %18.5’i ise ağır klinik tabloya sahipti. COVID-19 hastalarının prognozunu etkileyen faktörleri belirlemek amacıyla lojistik regresyon analizi yapıldı. Prognoz ile ilişkili faktörler erkek cinsiyet, diyabetes mellitus, KOAH, hipertansiyon varlığı, ateş, nefes darlığı ve öksürük olarak bulundu. Hastaların 1. ve 5.gün bakılan lenfosit (lenfopeni), C-Reaktif Protein (CRP), Prokalsitonin (PCT),nötrofil7lenfosit oranı (NLO), platelet /lenfosit oranı (PLO), D-Dimer değerleri tanı anında ve takiplerde mortalite öngörücüsü olarak tespit edildi (p

Does educational stress mediate the relationship between intolerance of uncertainty and academic life satisfaction in teenagers during the COVID-19 pandemic?

The present study aims to investigate the mediator role of educational stress in the relationship between intolerance to uncertainty and academic life satisfaction among teenagers. The sample consisted of 257 female and 202 male high school students with an average age of 16.03 (SD = 1.21) continuing their education in the spring semester of the 2020-2021 academic year in Turkey. The data were collected via an online survey. Analyses revealed that intolerance of uncertainty directly and indirectly via educational stress affects the academic life satisfaction of teenagers. Educational stress partially mediates the relationship. It was also found that the full mediation model has a good fit with the data. The academic life satisfaction of teenagers was harmed by their tendencies in tolerating the uncertainties they have been facing during the COVID-19 pandemic and elevated levels of educational stress.

Predictors for adult COVID-19 hospitalized inpatient mortality rate in North West Ethiopia

Objectives:

The spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 in Ethiopia is below par understood and to date has been poorly characterized by a lower number of confirmed cases and deaths to other regions of the sub-Sahara African including Ethiopia. Timely and effective predictors for inpatient mortality rate were crucial for improving the management of hospitalized cases. This study aimed to assessed predictors for inpatient mortality of COVID-19 hospitalized adult patients in two diagnosed and treatment centers, North West Ethiopia.

Methods:

A facility-based retrospective cohort study was conducted among COVID-19 adult admitted cases in two treatment centers, Northwest Ethiopia, from 1 October 2020 to 30 December 2020. Data from the records of children were extracted using a standardized checklist. Epi-Data version 3.2 was used for data entry, and Stata version 14 was used for analysis. Bi-variable and multivariable Cox regression analyses were conducted to identify predictors of mortality. Finally, variables with P < 0.05 were a significant predictor of inpatient mortality.

Result:

The mean (±standard deviation) age of participant cases was 48.6 (±18.8) years. The median (±interquartile range) time for death reported after was 13 (±6) days. The overall incidence rate inpatient mortality rate was determined as 1.8 (95% confidence interval: 1.72, 2.15) per100 person per days of observation. Cases at baseline age ⩾ 61 years (adjusted hazard ratio = 1.56; 95% confidence interval: 1.3, 2.4), being male gender (adjusted hazard ratio = 1.9; 95% CI: 2.1, 8.6), admission with comorbidity (adjusted hazard ratio: 4.4, 95% confidence interval: 2.3, 8.4), and decreased neutrophil count ⩽ 65 10³/uL at (P < 0.03) were independent predictors for inpatient mortality.

Conclusion:

In general, 72.4% of COVID-19 inpatient deaths were occurred within 2 weeks after admission. The mortality risk factors for severe patients identified in this study using a multivariate Cox regression model included elderly age (⩾60 years), being male, baseline comorbidity, and neutrophil count ⩽65 10³/uL were associated with inpatient mortality.

Infectious Diseases Society of America Guidelines on Infection Prevention for Healthcare Personnel Caring for Patients with Suspected or Known COVID-19

BACKGROUND

Since its emergence in late 2019, SARS-CoV-2 continues to pose a risk to healthcare personnel (HCP) and patients in healthcare settings. Although all clinical interactions likely carry some risk of transmission, human actions like coughing and care activities like aerosol-generating procedures likely have a higher risk of transmission. The rapid emergence and global spread of SARS-CoV-2 continues to create significant challenges in healthcare facilities, particularly with shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) used by HCP. Evidence-based recommendations for what PPE to use in conventional, contingency, and crisis standards of care continue to be needed. Where evidence is lacking, the development of specific research questions can help direct funders and investigators.

OBJECTIVE

Develop evidence-based rapid guidelines intended to support HCP in their decisions about infection prevention when caring for patients with suspected or known COVID-19.

METHODS

IDSA formed a multidisciplinary guideline panel including frontline clinicians, infectious disease specialists, experts in infection control, and guideline methodologists with representation from the disciplines of public health, medical microbiology, pediatrics, critical care medicine and gastroenterology. The process followed a rapid recommendation checklist. The panel prioritized questions and outcomes. Then a systematic review of the peer-reviewed and grey literature was conducted. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach was used to assess the certainty of evidence and make recommendations.

RESULTS

The IDSA guideline panel agreed on eight recommendations, including two updated recommendations and one new recommendation added since the first version of the guideline. Narrative summaries of other interventions undergoing evaluations are also included.

CONCLUSIONS

Using a combination of direct and indirect evidence, the panel was able to provide recommendations for eight specific questions on the use of PPE for HCP providing care for patients with suspected or known COVID-19. Where evidence was lacking, attempts were made to provide potential avenues for investigation. There remain significant gaps in the understanding of the transmission dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 and PPE recommendations may need to be modified in response to new evidence. These recommendations should serve as a minimum for PPE use in healthcare facilities and do not preclude decisions based on local risk assessments or requirements of local health jurisdictions or other regulatory bodies.

Diabetic ketoacidosis in patients with SARS-CoV-2: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

One possible reason for increased mortality due to SARS-CoV-2 in patients with diabetes is from the complication of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA).

OBJECTIVES

To re-evaluate the association of SARS-CoV-2 and development of DKA and analyse the demographic and biochemical parameters and the clinical outcomes in COVID-19 patients with DKA.

DESIGN

A systematic review and meta-analysis. Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement was followed.

METHODS

Electronic databases (Proquest, Medline, Embase, Pubmed, CINAHL, Wiley online library, Scopus and Nature) were searched from 1 December 2019 to 30 June 2021 in the English language using the following keywords alone or in combination: COVID-19 OR SARS-CoV-2 AND diabetic ketoacidosis OR DKA OR ketosis OR ketonemia OR hyperglycaemic emergency OR hyperglycaemic crisis. We included studies in adults and children of all ages in all healthcare settings. Binary logistic regression model was used to explore the effect of various demographic and biochemical parameters variables on patient's final treatment outcome (survival or death).

RESULTS

Of the 484 papers that were identified, 68 articles were included in the systematic review and meta-analysis (54 case report, 10 case series, and 4 cohort studies). Studies involving 639 DKA patients with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 [46 (7.2%) were children and 334 (52.3%) were adults] were analyzed. The median or mean patient age ranged from < 1 years to 66 years across studies. Most of the patients (n = 309, 48.3%) had pre-existing type 2 diabetes mellitus. The majority of the patients were male (n = 373, 58.4%) and belonged to Hispanic (n = 156, 24.4%) and black (n = 98, 15.3%) ethnicity. The median random blood glucose level, HbA1c, pH, bicarbonate, and anion gap in all included patients at presentation were 507 mg/dl [IQR 399-638 mg/dl], 11.4% [IQR 9.9-13.5%], 7.16 [IQR 7.00-7.22], 10 mmol/l [IQR 6.9-13 mmol/l], and 24.5 mEq/l [18-29.2 mEq/l]; respectively. Mortality rate was [63/243, 25.9%], with a majority of death in patients of Hispanic ethnicity (n = 17, 27%; p = 0.001). The odd ratios of death were significantly high in patients with pre-existing diabetes mellitus type 2 [OR 5.24, 95% CI 2.07-15.19; p = 0.001], old age (≥ 60 years) [OR 3.29, 95% CI 1.38-7.91; p = 0.007], and male gender [OR 2.61, 95% CI 1.37-5.17; p = 0.004] compared to those who survived.

CONCLUSION

DKA is not uncommon in SARS-CoV-2 patients with diabetes mellitus and results in a mortality rate of 25.9%. Mortality key determinants in DKA patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection are individuals with pre-existing diabetes mellitus type 2, older age [≥ 60 years old], male gender, BMI ≥ 30, blood glucose level > 1000 mg/dl, and anion gap ≥ 30 mEq/l.

Examining the Clinical Prognosis of Critically Ill Patients with COVID-19 Admitted to Intensive Care Units: A Nationwide Saudi Study

Backgroundand Objectives: COVID-19 is a novel infectious disease caused by a single-stranded RNA coronavirus called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). We aimed to conduct a nationwide multicenter study to determine the characteristics and the clinical prognostic outcome of critically ill COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs). Materials and Methods: This is a nationwide cohort retrospective study conducted in twenty Saudi hospitals. Results: An analysis of 1470 critically ill COVID-19 patients demonstrated that the majority of patients were male with a mean age of 55.9 ± 15.1 years. Most of our patients presented with a shortness of breath (SOB) (81.3%), followed by a fever (73.7%) and a cough (65.1%). Diabetes and hypertension were the most common comorbidities in the study (52.4% and 46.0%, respectively). Multiple complications were observed substantially more among non-survivors. The length and frequency of mechanical ventilation use were significantly greater (83%) in the non-survivors compared with the survivors (31%). The mean Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score was 6 ± 5. The overall mortality rate of the cohort associated with patients that had diabetes, hypertension and ischemic heart disease was 41.8%. Conclusion: Age; a pre-existing medical history of hypertension, diabetes and ischemic heart disease; smoking cigarettes; a BMI ≥ 29; a long mechanical ventilation and ICU stay; the need of ventilatory support; a high SOFA score; fungal co-infections and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) use were key clinical characteristics that predicted a high mortality in our population.