Remote ophthalmology with a smartphone adapter handled by nurses for the diagnosis of eye posterior pole pathologies during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction: The use of smartphones to provide specialist ophthalmology services is becoming a more commonly used method to support patients with eye pathologies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, demand for telehealth services such as tele-ophthalmology, is increasing rapidly.Methods: In 2019, the agreement between diagnostic tests was investigated by comparing the diagnostic performance for eye posterior pole pathologies of the images obtained by a smartphone coupled to a medical device known as open retinoscope (OR), handled by a nurse and subsequently assessed by an ophthalmologist versus the images obtained by an ophthalmologist using a slit lamp associated to a 76 diopter indirect ophthalmic lens (Volk Super FieldVR ) (SL-IOL) at the outpatient department of a hospital. The OR used in this study worked with a 28 diopter indirect lens.Results: An examination of 151 dilated eyes (79 adult patients, mean age of 66.7 years, 59.5% women) was conducted. Sensitivity was 98.9%, specificity was 89.8%, the positive predictive value was 93.8% and the negative predictive value was 98.2%. The kappa index between both tests was 0.90 (95% CI: 0.83-0.97) in basic diagnosis, 0.81 (95% CI: 0.74-0.89) in syndromic diagnosis (13 categories) and 0.70 (95% CI: 0.62-0.77) in advanced diagnosis (23 categories).Discussion: Images obtained by a nurse using a smartphone coupled to the OR and subsequently assessed by an ophthalmologist showed a high diagnostic performance for eye posterior pole pathologies, which could pave the way for remote ophthalmology systems for this patient group.

Major candidate variables to guide personalised treatment with steroids in critically ill patients with COVID-19: CIBERESUCICOVID study.

PURPOSE: Although there is evidence supporting the benefits of corticosteroids in patients affected with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), there is little information related to their potential benefits or harm in some subgroups of patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) with COVID-19. We aim to investigate to find candidate variables to guide personalized treatment with steroids in critically ill patients with COVID-19. METHODS: Multicentre, observational cohort study including consecutive COVID-19 patients admitted to 55 Spanish ICUs. The primary outcome was 90-day mortality. Subsequent analyses in clinically relevant subgroups by age, ICU baseline illness severity, organ damage, laboratory findings and mechanical ventilation were performed. High doses of corticosteroids (≥ 12 mg/day equivalent dexamethasone dose), early administration of corticosteroid treatment (< 7 days since symptom onset) and long term of corticosteroids (≥ 10 days) were also investigated. RESULTS: Between February 2020 and October 2021, 4226 patients were included. Of these, 3592 (85%) patients had received systemic corticosteroids during hospitalisation. In the propensity-adjusted multivariable analysis, the use of corticosteroids was protective for 90-day mortality in the overall population (HR 0.77 [0.65-0.92], p = 0.003) and in-hospital mortality (SHR 0.70 [0.58-0.84], p < 0.001). Significant effect modification was found after adjustment for covariates using propensity score for age (p = 0.001 interaction term), Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score (p = 0.014 interaction term), and mechanical ventilation (p = 0.001 interaction term). We observed a beneficial effect of corticosteroids on 90-day mortality in various patient subgroups, including those patients aged ≥ 60 years; those with higher baseline severity; and those receiving invasive mechanical ventilation at ICU admission. Early administration was associated with a higher risk of 90-day mortality in the overall population (HR 1.32 [1.14-1.53], p < 0.001). Long-term use was associated with a lower risk of 90-day mortality in the overall population (HR 0.71 [0.61-0.82], p < 0.001). No effect was found regarding the dosage of corticosteroids. Moreover, the use of corticosteroids was associated with an increased risk of nosocomial bacterial pneumonia and hyperglycaemia. CONCLUSION: Corticosteroid in ICU-admitted patients with COVID-19 may be administered based on age, severity, baseline inflammation, and invasive mechanical ventilation. Early administration since symptom onset may prove harmful.

Prognostic implications of comorbidity patterns in critically ill COVID-19 patients: A multicenter, observational study.

Background: The clinical heterogeneity of COVID-19 suggests the existence of different phenotypes with prognostic implications. We aimed to analyze comorbidity patterns in critically ill COVID-19 patients and assess their impact on in-hospital outcomes, response to treatment and sequelae. Methods: Multicenter prospective/retrospective observational study in intensive care units of 55 Spanish hospitals. 5866 PCR-confirmed COVID-19 patients had comorbidities recorded at hospital admission; clinical and biological parameters, in-hospital procedures and complications throughout the stay; and, clinical complications, persistent symptoms and sequelae at 3 and 6 months. Findings: Latent class analysis identified 3 phenotypes using training and test subcohorts: low-morbidity (n=3385; 58%), younger and with few comorbidities; high-morbidity (n=2074; 35%), with high comorbid burden; and renal-morbidity (n=407; 7%), with chronic kidney disease (CKD), high comorbidity burden and the worst oxygenation profile. Renal-morbidity and high-morbidity had more in-hospital complications and higher mortality risk than low-morbidity (adjusted HR (95% CI): 1.57 (1.34-1.84) and 1.16 (1.05-1.28), respectively). Corticosteroids, but not tocilizumab, were associated with lower mortality risk (HR (95% CI) 0.76 (0.63-0.93)), especially in renal-morbidity and high-morbidity. Renal-morbidity and high-morbidity showed the worst lung function throughout the follow-up, with renal-morbidity having the highest risk of infectious complications (6%), emergency visits (29%) or hospital readmissions (14%) at 6 months (p<0.01). Interpretation: Comorbidity-based phenotypes were identified and associated with different expression of in-hospital complications, mortality, treatment response, and sequelae, with CKD playing a major role. This could help clinicians in day-to-day decision making including the management of post-discharge COVID-19 sequelae. Funding: ISCIII, UNESPA, CIBERES, FEDER, ESF.

ICU-Acquired Pneumonia Is Associated with Poor Health Post-COVID-19 Syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Some patients previously presenting with COVID-19 have been reported to develop persistent COVID-19 symptoms. While this information has been adequately recognised and extensively published with respect to non-critically ill patients, less is known about the incidence and factors associated with the characteristics of persistent COVID-19. On the other hand, these patients very often have intensive care unit-acquired pneumonia (ICUAP). A second infectious hit after COVID increases the length of ICU stay and mechanical ventilation and could have an influence on poor health post-COVID 19 syndrome in ICU-discharged patients. METHODS: This prospective, multicentre, and observational study was carrid out across 40 selected ICUs in Spain. Consecutive patients with COVID-19 requiring ICU admission were recruited and evaluated three months after hospital discharge. RESULTS: A total of 1255 ICU patients were scheduled to be followed up at 3 months; however, the final cohort comprised 991 (78.9%) patients. A total of 315 patients developed ICUAP (97% of them had ventilated ICUAP). Patients requiring invasive mechanical ventilation had more persistent post-COVID-19 symptoms than those who did not require mechanical ventilation. Female sex, duration of ICU stay, development of ICUAP, and ARDS were independent factors for persistent poor health post-COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: Persistent post-COVID-19 symptoms occurred in more than two-thirds of patients. Female sex, duration of ICU stay, development of ICUAP, and ARDS all comprised independent factors for persistent poor health post-COVID-19. Prevention of ICUAP could have beneficial effects in poor health post-COVID-19.

The evolution of the ventilatory ratio is a prognostic factor in mechanically ventilated COVID-19 ARDS patients.

BACKGROUND: Mortality due to COVID-19 is high, especially in patients requiring mechanical ventilation. The purpose of the study is to investigate associations between mortality and variables measured during the first three days of mechanical ventilation in patients with COVID-19 intubated at ICU admission. METHODS: Multicenter, observational, cohort study includes consecutive patients with COVID-19 admitted to 44 Spanish ICUs between February 25 and July 31, 2020, who required intubation at ICU admission and mechanical ventilation for more than three days. We collected demographic and clinical data prior to admission; information about clinical evolution at days 1 and 3 of mechanical ventilation; and outcomes. RESULTS: Of the 2,095 patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU, 1,118 (53.3%) were intubated at day 1 and remained under mechanical ventilation at day three. From days 1 to 3, PaO2/FiO2 increased from 115.6 [80.0-171.2] to 180.0 [135.4-227.9] mmHg and the ventilatory ratio from 1.73 [1.33-2.25] to 1.96 [1.61-2.40]. In-hospital mortality was 38.7%. A higher increase between ICU admission and day 3 in the ventilatory ratio (OR 1.04 [CI 1.01-1.07], p = 0.030) and creatinine levels (OR 1.05 [CI 1.01-1.09], p = 0.005) and a lower increase in platelet counts (OR 0.96 [CI 0.93-1.00], p = 0.037) were independently associated with a higher risk of death. No association between mortality and the PaO2/FiO2 variation was observed (OR 0.99 [CI 0.95 to 1.02], p = 0.47). CONCLUSIONS: Higher ventilatory ratio and its increase at day 3 is associated with mortality in patients with COVID-19 receiving mechanical ventilation at ICU admission. No association was found in the PaO2/FiO2 variation.