ABSTRACT
Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has resulted in severe acute respiratory failure, requiring intubation and an invasive mechanical ventilation. However, the time for initiation of intubation remains debatable. Therefore, this study aimed to compare early and late intubation on the outcome of COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of selected Addis Ababa COVID-19 treatment centers, Ethiopia. Methods: A multicenter retrospective cohort study was conducted on 94 early and late intubated ICU-admitted COVID-19 patients from October 1, 2020, to October 31, 2021, in three selected COVID-19 treatment centers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A simple random sampling technique was used to select study participants. An independent t-test, Mann Whitney U test and Fisher's exact test were used for statistical analysis, as appropriate. A P value < 0.05 was used to declare a statistical significance. Results: A total of 94 patients participated, for a response rate of 94.68%. There was a statistically insignificant difference in the rates of death between the early intubated (47.2%) and the late intubated (46.1%) groups (P = 0.678). There was no difference in the median length of stay on a mechanical ventilator (in days) between the groups (P = 0.11). However, the maximum length of stay in the ICU to discharge was significantly shorter in the early intubated (33.1 days) than late intubated groups (63.79 days) (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Outcomes (death or survival) were similar whether early or late intubation was used. Early intubation did appear to improve length of ICU stay in ICU-admitted COVID-19 patients.