LONG-TERM SURVEY STUDY of the IMPACT of COVID-19 on SYSTEMIC AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES. LOW DEATH RATE DESPITE the INCREASED PREVALENCE of SYMPTOMATIC INFECTION. ROLE of PRE-EXISTING INTERSTITIAL LUNG DISEASE and ONGOING TREATMENTS

Background: Patients with autoimmune systemic diseases (ASDs) can be counted among frail populations as regards the predisposition to COVID-19 due to the frequent visceral organ involvement and comorbidities, as well as the ongoing immunomodulating treatments. Objectives: Our long-term multicenter telephone survey prospectively investigated the prevalence, prognostic factors, and outcomes of COVID-19 in Italian ASD patients during the frst 3 pandemic waves. Methods: A large series of 3,918 ASD patients (815 M, 3103 F;mean age 59±12SD years) was consecutively recruited at the 36 referral centers of COVID-19 & ASD Italian Study Group. In particular, ASD series encompassed the following conditions: rheumatoid arthritis (n: 981), psoriatic arthritis (n: 471), ankylosing spondylitis (n: 159), systemic sclerosis (n: 1,738), systemic lupus (172), systemic vasculitis (n: 219), and a miscellany of other ASDs (n: 178). The development of COVID-19 was recorded by means of telephone survey using standardized symptom-assessment questionnaire (1). Results: A signifcantly increased prevalence of COVID-19 (8.37% vs 6.49%;p<0.0001) was observed in our ASD patients, while the cumulative death rate revealed statistically comparable to the Italian general population (3.65% vs 2.95%;p: ns). In particular, among the 328 ASD patients complicated by COVID-19, 57 (17%) needed hospitalization, while mild-moderate manifestations were observed in the large majority of individuals (83%). In addition, 12/57 hospitalized patients died due to severe interstitial pneumonia and/or cardiovascular manifestations. Interestingly, a signifcantly higher COVID-19-related death rate was observed in systemic sclerosis patients compared to the Italian general population (6.29% vs 2.95%;p=0.018). Other adverse prognostic factors to develop COVID-19 were the patients' older age, male gender, pre-existing ASD-related interstitial lung involvement, and chronic steroid treatment. Conversely, patients treated with conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (csDMARDs) showed a signifcantly lower prevalence of COVID-19 compared to those without (3.58% vs 46.99%;p=0.000), as well as the chronic administration of low dose aspirin in a subgroup of SSc patients (with 5.57% vs without 27.84%;p=0.000). Conclusion: The cumulative impact of COVID-19 on ASD patients after the frst 3 pandemic waves revealed less severe than that observed during the frst phase of pandemic (1), especially with regards to the death rate that was comparable to the Italian general population in spite of the increased prevalence of complicating COVID-19 in the same ASD series. Ongoing long-term treatments, mainly csDMARDs, might usefully contribute to generally positive outcomes of in this frail patients' population. Of note, a signifcantly increased COVID-19-related mortality was recorded in only SSc patients' subgroup, possibly favored by pre-existing lung fbrosis. Among different ASD, SSc deserves special attention, since it shares the main pathological alterations with COVID-19, namely the interstitial lung involvement and the endothelial injury responsible for diffuse microangiopathy. Besides SSc, the patients' subgroups characterized by older age, chronic steroid treatment, pre-existing interstitial lung disease, and/or impaired COVID-19 vaccine response (1-3), may deserve well-designed prevention and management strategies.

IMPORTANCE of TELEMEDICINE in the SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS during COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Background: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2), also called COVID-19 disease, was frstly reported in December 2019 in China and soon declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020 (1). As a result, patients' visits to medical facilities are affected. Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a chronic systemic autoimmune disease characterized by vascular damage, autoimmunity, and fbrosis. In these patients, a tight follow-up is crucial to verify the specifc cases and clinical needs. In particular, the infection risk in SSc might also be related not only to disease activity but also to possible fares due to therapy discontinuation. Telemedicine has demonstrated as a valid alternative to improve the quality of rheumatic patients' care during COVID-19 pandemic, thus reducing hospitalizations only to urgent admissions (2) Objectives: In december 2020 the Azienda Policlincio Vanvitelli approved telemedicine by IRPLUS platform as a particular measure in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study we examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on visit status of SSc patients at our centre and the patient benefts of telemedicine Methods: In this study, we retrospectively enrolled 480 SSc patients who visited in our centre between January and December 2021. Of the patients included in the study, 198 patients (18 males and 180 females) used telemedicine, while 282 patients (20 males and 262 females) did not use it Results: During televisites, we assessed possible contacts with COVID-19 patients and/or potential risk of COVID-19, investigating about the occurrence of typical symptoms in the last 15 days. No signifcant differences in background data, such as the severity of the disease, type of treatment and frequency of complications were found between these two groups. In more detail, SSc is associated interstitial lung disease was complicated by 35.4% and 31.3% of patients in the telemedicine and non-telemedicine groups, respectively (p=0.9). Besides, 53.7% of patients in the telemedicine group and 49.9% of patients in the non-telemedicine group were treated with prednisone (p=0.344). 74.1% of patients in the telemedicine group were administered immunosuppressive drugs, compared to 78.5% of patients in the non-telemedicine group (p=1.000). The number of patients who discontinued treatment was signifcantly lower in the telemedicine group, with 14 patients (7%) compared to 30 patients (11.4%) in the non-telemedicine group (p=0.003). These patients who voluntarily discontinued treatment were fnally resumed. However, the time required to resume treatment differed between the two groups. This means that the duration of treatment interruption was signifcantly shorter in the telemedicine group, with a mean (± standard deviation) of 1.85 (5.5) days compared to 7. 5 (12.1) days in the non-telemedicine group (p=0.001). There was no difference in the amount of change in laboratory data between the groups receiving telemedicine and those not receiving telemedicine. Conclusion: This study confrmed the data published by Norimatsu et al (3), as that telemedicine may help SSc patients to continue and/or resume treatment under the COVID-19 pandemic. SSc is associated to interstitial lung disease, cardiac involvement, vascular injury and prednisone and immunosuppressive agents have been used as treatment. Thus, disruptions in treatment can lead to worsening of symptoms and missed opportunities for early interventions for complications. Patients who use telemedicine may be more motivated to treat, and this retrospective study demonstered it. This study suggests that telemedicine can be useful in treating SSc and other diseases that require ongoing treatment in the COVID-19 infection.

DO ALL CRITICALLY ILL COVID-19 PATIENTS BENEFIT from INTENSIFYING with TOCILIZUMAB?

Background: Treatment guidelines recommend the use of tocilizumab in patients with a current CRP >7.5 mg/dl. Recent data showed that survival benefit might be greater in those with higher CRP levels. We aimed to estimate the causal effect of intensification with tocilizumab on mortality overall and after stratification for PaO2/FiO2 ratio, CRP levels. Methods: Observational cohort study of patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia. Primary endpoint was day-28 mortality. Survival analysis was conducted to estimate the conditional and average causal effect of tocilizumab intensification vs. glucocorticoids alone using Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox regression models with a time-varying variable for the intervention. Analysis was controlled for age, ethnicity, duration of symptoms, at hospital admission (baseline, BL) PaO2/FiO2 ratio, CRP (BL and current), Charlson comorbidity index and post-BL use of remdesivir and invasive mechanical ventilation. The hypothesis of the existence of effect measure modification by CRP and PaO2/FiO2 ratio was tested by including an interaction term in the model. Results: 992 patients median age 69 years, 72.9% males, 597 (60.2%) treated with monotherapy and 395 (31.8%), adding tocilizumab upon respiratory deterioration were included. At BL, median CRP was 6.0 mg/dl (IQR 3.0-15.0) and median PaO2/FiO2 ratio was 261 mmHg (200-303). The two groups differed for median values of: CRP (6 vs 7 mg/dL;p<.001)), IL-6, (27.6 vs 175.0 mg/L;p<.001) LDH (525 vs 622 U/L;p<.001), lymphocytes (939 vs 835/mm3;p<.001) and PaO2/FiO2 ratio (276 vs 235 mmHg;p<.001) at BL. In the unadjusted analysis there was no statistically significant difference in mortality between the two groups, but there was strong evidence for an effect of the intensification after controlling for key BL and post-BL confounders, consistent with the estimate in trials (adjusted hazard ratio (aHR)=0.59, 95% CI:0.38-0.90). Although the study was not powered to detect interactions (p>0.57) there was a signal for intensification to have a larger effect in subsets, especially participants with high levels of CRP at intensification (Figure). Conclusion: Our data suggest that intensification with tocilizumab confers reduced survival benefit in those intensifying with a CRP of 0-7.5 mg/dl. It also provides substantial benefit even in patients who are intensified with a CRP>15 mg/dl. Large randomised studies are needed to establish an exact cut-off for clinical use.

Exercise Training in Patients with Heart Failure: From Pathophysiology to Exercise Prescription

Heart failure (HF) is a chronic, progressive, and inexorable syndrome affecting worldwide billion of patients (equally distributed among men and women), with prevalence estimate of 1–3% in developed countries. HF leads to enormous direct and indirect costs, and because of ageing population, the total number of HF patients keep rising, approximately 10% in patients >65 years old. Exercise training (ET) is widely recognized as an evidence-based adjunct treatment modality for patients with HF, and growing evidence is emerging among elderly patients with HF. We used relevant data from literature search (PubMed, Medline, EMBASE) highlighting the epidemiology of HF; focusing on central and peripheral mechanisms underlying the beneficial effect of ET in HF patients; and on frail HF elderly patients undergoing ET. Since many Countries ordered a lockdown in early stages pandemic trying to limit infections, COVID-19 pandemic, and its limitation to exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation operativity was also discussed. ET exerts both central and peripheral adaptations that clinically translate into anti-remodeling effects, increased functional capacity and reduced morbidity and mortality. Ideally, ET programs should be prescribed in a patient-tailored approach, particularly in frail elderly patients with HF. In conclusion, given the complexity of HF syndrome, combining, and tailoring different ET modalities is mandatory. A procedural algorithm according to patient’s baseline clinical characteristics [i.e., functional capacity, comorbidity, frailty status (muscle strength, balance, usual daily activities, hearing and vision impairment, sarcopenia, and inability to actively exercise), logistics, individual preferences and goals] has been proposed. Increasing long-term adherence and reaching the frailest patients are challenging goals for future initiatives in the field.

Predictors of in-hospital mortality of COVID-19 patients and the role of telemetry in an internal medicine ward during the third phase of the pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: The first pandemic phase of COVID-19 in Italy was characterized by high in-hospital mortality ranging from 23% to 38%. During the third pandemic phase there has been an improvement in the management and treatment of COVID-19, so mortality and predictors may have changed. A prospective study was planned to identify predictors of mortality during the third pandemic phase. PATIENTS AND METHODS: From 15 December 2020 to 15 May 2021, 208 patients were hospitalized (median age: 64 years; males: 58.6%); 83% had a median of 2 (IQR,1-4) comorbidities; pneumonia was present in 89.8%. Patients were monitored remotely for respiratory function and ECG trace for 24 hours/day. Management and treatment were done following the timing and dosage recommended by international guidelines. RESULTS: 79.2% of patients necessitated O2-therapy. ARDS was present in 46.1% of patients and 45.4% received non-invasive ventilation and 11.1% required ICU treatment. 38% developed arrhythmias which were identified early by telemetry and promptly treated. The in-hospital mortality rate was 10%. At multivariate analysis independent predictors of mortality were: older age (R-R for≥70 years: 5.44), number of comorbidities ≥3 (R-R 2.72), eGFR ≤60 ml/min (RR 2.91), high d-Dimer (R-R for≥1,000 ng/ml:7.53), and low PaO2/FiO2 (R-R for <200: 3.21). CONCLUSIONS: Management and treatment adherence to recommendations, use of telemetry, and no overcrowding appear to reduce mortality. Advanced age, number of comorbidities, severe renal failure, high d-Dimer and low P/F remain predictors of poor outcome. The data help to identify current high-risk COVID-19 patients in whom management has yet to be optimized, who require the greatest therapeutic effort, and subjects in whom vaccination is mandatory.

Increased COVID-19 mortality in patients with rheumatic diseases: results from the CONTROL-19 study by the Italian Society for Rheumatology

OBJECTIVES: To investigate differences in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mortality between patients with rheumatic musculoskeletal diseases (RMD) and the general population in Italy. METHODS: We analysed the data from the national surveillance study promoted by the Italian Society for Rheumatology (CONTROL-19 database) including patients with RMD and COVID-19 between 26 March 2020 and 29 November 2020, compared with official data from the Italian population (within the same period) adjusted for age, sex and geographic location. The main outcome of the analyses was mortality. The relationship between RMD and mortality was analysed using adjusted logistic models and sensitivity analyses were conducted to support the robustness of our results. RESULTS: We included 668 RMD patients (62.7% with inflammatory arthritis, 28.6% with systemic autoimmune diseases), who had a mean age of 58.4 years and of which 66% were female. Compared to the general population, the RMD population showed an increased risk of death (OR 3.10 (95% CI 2.29-4.12)), independently from the differences in age and sex distribution. Even after considering the potential influence of surveillance bias, the OR was 2.08 (95% CI: 1.55-2.73). Such excess of risk was more evident in the subgroup of younger patients, and more consistent in women. Subjects with systemic autoimmune diseases showed a higher risk of death than patients with any other RMDs. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with RMD and COVID-19 infection evidenced a significant increase in mortality during the first pandemic phases in Italy. These findings support the need for strong SARS-CoV-2 prevention in patients with rheumatic diseases.

Safety profile of pfizer-biontech COVID-19 vaccine in patients with rheumatic diseases: Preliminary assessment

Background: Efficacious vaccines are urgently needed to contain the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic of infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). On December 11, 2020, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to prevent COVID-19, administered as 2 doses separated by 21 days (1) On December 27, 2020, Italy started use of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and initial doses were reserved for health care personnel Objectives: The primary end points were the safety of each administered dose in patients with Rheumatic diseases (RD's) Methods: In this multicenter, observational study, we interviewed by phone 27 patients with rheumatic diseases (RDs) and 30 healthy subjects receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine (0.3 ml i.m. in two doses 21 days apart, time 0 and 3 weeks). Results: As of 30 January 2021, 57 subjects (27 patients and 30 healthy subjects) were interviewed. The epidemiological and clinical features of the 27 patients are reported in Table 1. Among the whole population, 35 subjects (16 patients and 19 healthy subjects) complained of an adverse event after the first vaccine dose, with symptom onset occurring within 1 day of vaccination. All adverse events (100%) were classified as nonserious and included: injection site pain (17), fatigue (5), headache (16), fever (3), tachycardia (2), and paresthesia (2). After 21 days, 6 patients and 11 healthy subjects received the second vaccine dose. Fifteen (5 patients and 10 healthy subjects) of them (88%) reported adverse events, again categorized as nonserious. Specifically, injection site pain (7), fatigue (10), headache (10), fever (10), paresthesia (1), cutaneous vasculitis (1), itchy and scratchy throat (1), diarrhea (4), lymph node enlargement (1) were recorded. No differences were noted between patients with RDs and healthy subjects in terms of adverse events. Conclusion: This preliminary study shows that the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine is as safe in patients with RDs as in healthy subjects. Whether patients with RDs will develop protective titers of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies as compared to healthy subjects will be evaluated in further, ongoing studies.

COVID-19 in Italian patients with rheumatic autoimmune systemic diseases: Results of a nationwide survey study

Background: SARS-CoV-2 infection poses a serious challenge for patients with rheumatic autoimmune systemic diseases (ASD), characterized by marked immune-system dysregulation and frequent visceral organ involvement. Objectives: To evaluate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic in a large series of Italian patients with ASD. Methods: Our multicenter telephone survey (8-week period, March-April 2020) included a large series of 2,994 patients (584 M, 2,410 F, mean age 58.9±13.4SD years) with ASD followed at 34 tertiary referral centers of 14 regions of northern, central, and southern Italian macro areas, characterized by different prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection. According to currently used criteria, COVID-19 was classified as definite COVID-19 (signs or symptoms of COVID-19 confirmed by positive oral/nasopharyngeal swabs at PCR testing) or highly suspected COVID-19 (signs or symptoms highly suggestive of Covid-19, but not confirmed by PCR testing due to limited availability of virological tests in that period). The results were analyzed performing the Odds Ratio by Java-Stat 2-way Contingency Table Analysis. Results: The main findings of the survey study revealed a significantly increased prevalence of COVID-19 in: a.the whole series of ASD patients (definite Covid-19: 22/2994, 0.73%;p=0.0007;definite COVID-19 plus highly suspected Covid-19: 74/2,994, 2.47%;p<0.0001) when compared to Italian general population of COVID-19 infected individuals (349/100000 = 0.34%;data from Italian Superior Institute of Health;h t t p s : / / w w w . e p i c e n t r o . i s s . i t / e n / c o r o n a v i r u s / sars-cov-2-national-surveillance-system). b.the subgroup of patients with connective tissue diseases or systemic vasculitis (n = 1,901) compared to the subgroup of inflammatory arthritis (n = 1,093), namely rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis (definite Covid-19: 19/1,901, 0.99%, vs 3/1,093, 0.27%;p=0.036;definite COVID-19 plus highly suspected Covid-19: 69/1,901, 3.6%, vs 5/1,093, 0.45%;p<0.0001) c.the subgroup of patients with pre-existing interstitial lung involvement (n = 526) compared to those without (n = 2,468) (definite Covid-19: 10/526, 1.90%, vs 12/2,468, 0.48%;p=0.0015;definite COVID-19 plus highly suspected Covid-19: 33/526, 6.27%, vs 41/2,468, 1.66%;p<0.0001). Of interest, the prevalence of COVID-19 did not correlate with presence/absence of different comorbidities, mainly diabetes, cardio-vascular and/or renal disorders, as well as of ongoing treatments with biological DMARDs;while patients treated with conventional DMARDs showed a significantly lower prevalence of COVID-19 compared to those without. COVID-19 was more frequently observed in the patients' populations from northern and central compared to southern Italian macro area with lower diffusion of pandemic. Clinical manifestations of Covid-19, observed in 74 patients, were generally mild or moderate;4/9 individuals requiring hospital admission died for severe pneumonia. Conclusion: The prevalence of COVID-19 observed in ASD patients during the first wave of pandemic was significantly higher than that observed in Italian general population;moreover, the actual prevalence of COVID-19 might be underestimated due to the high number of mild variants as well as the possible clinical overlapping between these two conditions. Patients with ASD should be invariably regarded as 'frail patients' during the pandemic course, considering the risk of worse outcome in the acute phase of Covid-19, as well as the potential long-term effects of viral infection. The statistically significant association of COVID-19 with connective tissue diseases/ systemic vasculitis, as well as with pre-existing interstitial lung involvement, suggests the presence of distinct clinico-pathological ASD subsets, characterized by markedly different patients' vulnerability to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Telemedicine in rheumatology at time of COVID pandemic

Background: The outbreak of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has imposed considerable restrictions on people's mobility in order to limit infection transmission. Before the COVID -19 pandemic tele-rheumatology was proposed to patients living in remote areas. Currently, the use of telemedicine has increased significantly. We report on the implementation of a telemedicine program for the evaluation and treatment of patients with rheumatic diseases (1). Objectives: The aim of the study is to evaluate telemedicine as a viable approach for routine follow-up and management of rheumatic disease. Methods: Sixty-six patients were evaluated online by the remote rheumatologist in four weeks. The population of rheumatology patients was evaluated using a IARPLUS platform Information collected included demographic information consisting of age, gender, and primary rheumatologic diagnosis. Results: The average age of patients who were seen was 54 years and 85% of patients were women. The most common disorders included rheumatoid arthritis (22, 33%), axial spondyloarthropathies (7, 11%), and psoriatic arthritis (15,23%), systemic sclerosis (13, 20%), lupus (6, 9%), UCTD (2,3%), Sjogren and fibromyalgia (1, 1.5%). Results: All patients were given recommendations on COVID-19 vaccine administration. Therapy was remodeled in 13 patients (in particular in 5 patients with anemia intravenous iron infusion was scheduled;1 started immunosuppressant therapy for proteinuria, 4 increased methotrexate for disease activity, 2 discontinued Methotrexate for adverse events (hypertransaminasemia), 1 suspended OH-chloroquine due to retinal accumulation;2 biologic-naive patients, after a three-month of waiting due to inability to come to the hospital, started the biologic drug;22 patients received a renewal of the therapeutic plan;25 patients had a regular six-month follow up;2 ticket exemption for illness;13 consultations and/ or laboratory tests (1 pneumological consultation, 1 ophthalmological consultation, 1 request for sacro-iliac MRI, 3 nailfold videocapillaroscopies, 3 FKT, 1 musculotendinous ultrasound, 1 antibodies for celiac disease, 2 antibodies anti Sars-CoV-2). Conclusion: Telemedicine is becoming more prevalent. We report the successful use of this service in evaluation and management of rheumatic diseases in a period with limited access to rheumatologic care. We have shown that patients can be seen, evaluated, and successfully treated with a variety of medications, including biologic agents, and evaluated for both chronic inflammatory arthropaties and connective tissue diseases.

Effects of cytokine blocking agents on hospital mortality in patients admitted to ICU with acute respiratory distress syndrome by SARS-CoV-2 infection: Retrospective cohort study

Background: The use of cytokine-blocking agents has been proposed to modulate the inflammatory response in patients with COVID-19. Tocilizumab and anakinra were included in the local protocol as an optional treatment in critically ill patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) by SARS-CoV-2 infection. This cohort study evaluated the effects of therapy with cytokine blocking agents on in-hospital mortality in COVID-19 patients requiring mechanical ventilation and admitted to intensive care unit. Methods: The association between therapy with tocilizumab or anakinra and in-hospital mortality was assessed in consecutive adult COVID-19 patients admitted to our ICU with moderate to severe ARDS. The association was evaluated by comparing patients who received to those who did not receive tocilizumab or anakinra and by using different multivariable Cox models adjusted for variables related to poor outcome, for the propensity to be treated with tocilizumab or anakinra and after patient matching. Results: Sixty-six patients who received immunotherapy (49 tocilizumab, 17 anakinra) and 28 patients who did not receive immunotherapy were included. The in-hospital crude mortality was 30,3% in treated patients and 50% in non-treated (OR 0.77, 95% CI 0.56-1.05, p=0.069). The adjusted Cox model showed an association between therapy with immunotherapy and in-hospital mortality (HR 0.40, 95% CI 0.19-0.83, p=0.015). This protective effect was further confirmed in the analysis adjusted for propensity score, in the propensity-matched cohort and in the cohort of patients with invasive mechanical ventilation within 2 hours after ICU admission. Conclusions: Although important limitations, our study showed that cytokine-blocking agents seem to be safe and to improve survival in COVID-19 patients admitted to ICU with ARDS and the need for mechanical ventilation.

Clinical application of lung ultrasound score on COVID-19 setting: a regional experience in Southern Italy.

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to assess the correlation between LUS Soldati proposed score and clinical presentation, course of disease and the possible need of ventilation support/intensive care. PATIENTS AND METHODS: All consecutive patients with laboratory confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and hospitalized in two COVID Centers were enrolled. All patients performed blood gas analysis and lung ultrasound (LUS) at admission. The LUS acquisition was based on standard sequence of 14 peculiar anatomic landmarks with a score between 0-3 based on impairment of LUS picture. Total score was computed with their sum with a total score ranging 0 to 42, according to Soldati LUS score. We evaluated the course of hospitalization until either discharge or death, the ventilatory support and the transition in intensive care if needed. RESULTS: One hundred and fifty-six patients were included in the final analysis. Most of patients presented moderate-to-severe respiratory failure (FiO2 <20%, PaO2 <60 mmHg) and consequent recommendation to invasive mechanic ventilation (CPAP/NIV/OTI). The median ultrasound thoracic score was 28 (IQR 18-36) and most of patients could be ascertained either in a score 2 (40%) or score 3 pictures (24.4%). The bivariate correlation analysis displayed statistically significant and high positive correlations between the LUS score and the following parameters: ventilation (rho=0.481, p<0.001), lactates (rho=0.464, p<0.001), dyspnea (rho=0.398, p=0.001) mortality (rho=0.410, p=0.001). Conversely, P/F (rho= -0.663, p<0.001), pH (rho = -0.363, p=0.003) and pO2 (rho = -0.400 p=0.001) displayed significant negative correlations. CONCLUSIONS: LUS score improve the workflow and provide an optimal management both in early diagnosis and prognosis of COVID-19 related lung pathology.