Ceolin C, De Rui M, Simonato C, Vergadoro M, Cazzavillan S, Acunto V, Papa MV, Trapella GS, Zanforlini BM, Curreri C, Bertocco A, Devita M, Coin A, Sergi G. Sarcopenic patients "get even": The impact of COVID-19 vaccination on mortality.
Exp Gerontol 2024;
187:112382. [PMID:
38369251 DOI:
10.1016/j.exger.2024.112382]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2024] [Revised: 02/06/2024] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19), driven by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, has disproportionately affected the elderly, with comorbidities like sarcopenia worsening prognosis. Considering the significant impact of RNA vaccines on survival rates in this population, our objective is to investigate the impact of vaccination on the survival of hospitalized elderly patients with COVID-19, considering the presence or absence of sarcopenia.
METHODS
Prospective study conducted on 159 patients aged>65 years from September 2021 to March 2022. Data about clinical and body composition, and mortality at 12-months after discharge were recorded. Sarcopenia was diagnosed according to the 2019 European Consensus criteria.
RESULTS
At the twelfth month post-discharge, vaccinated sarcopenic individuals exhibited a mortality risk similar to vaccinated non-sarcopenic individuals, and lower than unvaccinated non-sarcopenic patients. Cox regression analysis, adjusted for age, gender, comorbidity, functional and vaccinal status, showed that the presence of sarcopenia did not significantly impact the risk of death within 12-months post-discharge.
DISCUSSION
Vaccination emerges as a protective measure for sarcopenic patients, countering the potential adverse effects of sarcopenia on COVID-19 outcomes, underscoring the importance of immunization in the frail elderly with a call for meticulous monitoring of its benefits.
CONCLUSIONS
Our study represents the first attempt to analyze the vaccine's effect on survival in sarcopenic hospitalized older adults with COVID-19. The administration of vaccination to sarcopenic patients proves pivotal, as its omission could lead to notably unfavorable outcomes within this specific population.
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