Characteristics and outcomes of hospitalised adults with COVID-19 in a Global Health Research Network: a cohort study. Issue 8 (6th August 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zhu, Julia; Wei, Zhongyuan; Suryavanshi, Manasi; Chen, Xiu; Xia, Qian; Jiang, Jenny; Ayodele, Olulade; Bradbury, Brian D; Brooks, Corinne; Brown, Carolyn A; Cheng, Alvan; Critchlow, Cathy W; Devercelli, Giovanna; Gandhi, Vivek; Gondek, Kathleen; Londhe, Ajit A; Ma, Junjie; Jonsson-Funk, Michele; Keenan, Hillary A; Manne, Sudhakar; Ren, Kaili; Sanders, Lynn; Yu, Peter; Zhang, Jie; Zhou, Linyun; Bao, Ying
• Is Part Of: BMJ open. Volume 11:Issue 8(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-08-06
• Subjects: COVID-19 -- public health -- infectious diseases -- epidemiology; Medicine -- Research -- Periodicals; 610.72
• DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-051588
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 2044-6055

Abstract

Abstract : Objective: To examine age, gender, and temporal differences in baseline characteristics and clinical outcomes of adult patients hospitalised with COVID-19. Design: A cohort study using deidentified electronic medical records from a Global Research Network. Setting/Participants: 67 456 adult patients hospitalised with COVID-19 from the USA; 7306 from Europe, Latin America and Asia-Pacific between February 2020 and January 2021. Results: In the US cohort, compared with patients 18–34 years old, patients ≥65 had a greater risk of intensive care unit (ICU) admission (adjusted HR (aHR) 1.73, 95% CI 1.58 to 1.90), acute respiratory distress syndrome(ARDS)/respiratory failure (aHR 1.86, 95% CI 1.76 to 1.96), invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV, aHR 1.93, 95% CI, 1.73 to 2.15), and all-cause mortality (aHR 5.6, 95% CI 4.36 to 7.18). Men appeared to be at a greater risk for ICU admission (aHR 1.34, 95% CI 1.29 to 1.39), ARDS/respiratory failure (aHR 1.24, 95% CI1.21 to 1.27), IMV (aHR 1.38, 95% CI 1.32 to 1.45), and all-cause mortality (aHR 1.16, 95% CI 1.08 to 1.24) compared with women. Moreover, we observed a greater risk of adverse outcomes during the early pandemic (ie, February–April 2020) compared with later periods. In the ex-US cohort, the age and gender trends were similar; for the temporal trend, the highest proportion of patients with all-cause mortality were also in February–April 2020; however, the highest percentages of patients with IMV and ARDS/respiratory failure were in August–October 2020 followed by February–April 2020. Conclusions: This study provided valuable information on the temporal trends of characteristics and outcomes of hospitalised adult COVID-19 patients in both USA and ex-USA. It also described the population at a potentially greater risk for worse clinical outcomes by identifying the age and gender differences. Together, the information could inform the prevention and treatment strategies of COVID-19. Furthermore, it can be used to raise public awareness of COVID-19's impact on vulnerable populations.