A study of nearly 30,000 COVID-19 patients revealed that cardiovascular disease or risk factors for cardiovascular disease dramatically increased the risk of in-hospital mortality. The risk of death was particularly high for older, non-White men.
The current analysis utilized electronic health records from 54 health systems that use a COVID-19 database provided by health information technology firms Cerner and Amazon Web Services, which have made the database free of charge to researchers [1]. Dr. Ann Marie Navar (University of Texas Southwestern, USA) sought to understand who is most at risk, which is especially important for deploying immunization strategies. All hospitalized patients (n=28,299) had a positive COVID-19 lab test within 2 weeks of hospitalization. The median age was 52 years, 29.4% were Hispanic, and 47% were female.
The results, measured from January to July 2020, showed that in-hospital mortality was 20.7%. However, for the individuals for whom mechanical ventilation was required (32.6% of the hospitalized patients), the mortality was 74.6%. Concerning comorbidities, mortality was 20.4% for patients with hypertension, 21.5% for those with diabetes, 28.8% for those with coronary artery disease, and 34.2% for those with heart failure. Interestingly, Hispanics had a lower risk rate for mortality than all other races overall (RR 0.71; 95% CI 0.59-0.86).
- Navar A et al. Impact of Cardiovascular Disease on Outcomes Among Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients: Results From >14,000 Patients Across the United States. LBS.08, Virtual AHA Scientific Sessions 2020, 13-17 Nov.
