Clinical Evaluation of Patients with COVID-19 Within the Framework of Comorbidities.

Objectives: Chronic systemic diseases (CSD) and cancer are closely related to the clinical course, severity and mortality of COVID-19 due to the immunosuppressive conditions caused by these diseases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences between the effects of cancer and CSD on the clinical and laboratory parameters of patients with COVID-19. Methods: The study included patients who received inpatient treatment with the diagnosis of COVID-19 at Ondokuz Mayis University between March 16, 2020, and December 1, 2020. The participants were divided into four groups as follows: Those without comorbidities (Group 1), those with only CSD (Group 2), those with only cancer (Group 3), and those with both CSD and cancer (Group 4). Comparative statistical evaluation was performed in terms of clinical symptoms, biochemical parameters, and admission to intensive care and survival. Results: In total, 750 patients were included: 242 patients in Group 1, 442 in Group 2, 27 in Group 3, and 39 in Group 4. The mean age of the patients was 57.1±9.4 years and 53.7% were male. Patients of Group 1 were significantly different from those of the other groups in terms of age, requirement for intensive care and intubation, complications, survival, white blood cell and lymphocyte count, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio and levels of hemoglobin, lactic acid dehydrogenase, ferritin, D-dimer, and C-reactive protein (for each p<0.001). Conclusion: No difference was observed among laboratory parameters, intensive care admission, intubation need, complication frequency, and survival rates in patients with CSD or cancer. It was detected that all three groups with CSD and cancer were worse than Group 1 in terms of intensive care need, intubation, and survival.

The association of antiviral drugs with COVID-19 morbidity: The retrospective analysis of a nationwide COVID-19 cohort.

Background and objectives: Although several repurposed antiviral drugs have been used for the treatment of COVID-19, only a few such as remdesivir and molnupiravir have shown promising effects. The objectives of our study were to investigate the association of repurposed antiviral drugs with COVID-19 morbidity. Methods: Patients admitted to 26 different hospitals located in 16 different provinces between March 11-July 18, 2020, were enrolled. Case definition was based on WHO criteria. Patients were managed according to the guidelines by Scientific Board of Ministry of Health of Turkey. Primary outcomes were length of hospitalization, intensive care unit (ICU) requirement, and intubation. Results: We retrospectively evaluated 1,472 COVID-19 adult patients; 57.1% were men (mean age = 51.9 ± 17.7years). A total of 210 (14.3%) had severe pneumonia, 115 (7.8%) were admitted to ICUs, and 69 (4.7%) were intubated during hospitalization. The median (interquartile range) of duration of hospitalization, including ICU admission, was 7 (5-12) days. Favipiravir (n = 328), lopinavir/ritonavir (n = 55), and oseltamivir (n = 761) were administered as antiviral agents, and hydroxychloroquine (HCQ, n = 1,382) and azithromycin (n = 738) were used for their immunomodulatory activity. Lopinavir/ritonavir (ß [95% CI]: 4.71 [2.31-7.11]; p = 0.001), favipiravir (ß [95% CI]: 3.55 [2.56-4.55]; p = 0.001) and HCQ (ß [95% CI]: 0.84 [0.02-1.67]; p = 0.046) were associated with increased risk of lengthy hospital stays. Furthermore, favipiravir was associated with increased risks of ICU admission (OR [95% CI]: 3.02 [1.70-5.35]; p = 0.001) and invasive mechanical ventilation requirement (OR [95% CI]: 2.94 [1.28-6.75]; p = 0.011). Conclusion: Our findings demonstrated that antiviral drugs including lopinavir, ritonavir, and favipiravir were associated with negative clinical outcomes such as increased risks for lengthy hospital stay, ICU admission, and invasive mechanical ventilation requirement. Therefore, repurposing such agents without proven clinical evidence might not be the best approach for COVID-19 treatment.

The association of antiviral drugs with COVID-19 morbidity: The retrospective analysis of a nationwide COVID-19 cohort

Background and objectives Although several repurposed antiviral drugs have been used for the treatment of COVID-19, only a few such as remdesivir and molnupiravir have shown promising effects. The objectives of our study were to investigate the association of repurposed antiviral drugs with COVID-19 morbidity. Methods Patients admitted to 26 different hospitals located in 16 different provinces between March 11–July 18, 2020, were enrolled. Case definition was based on WHO criteria. Patients were managed according to the guidelines by Scientific Board of Ministry of Health of Turkey. Primary outcomes were length of hospitalization, intensive care unit (ICU) requirement, and intubation. Results We retrospectively evaluated 1,472 COVID-19 adult patients;57.1% were men (mean age = 51.9 ± 17.7years). A total of 210 (14.3%) had severe pneumonia, 115 (7.8%) were admitted to ICUs, and 69 (4.7%) were intubated during hospitalization. The median (interquartile range) of duration of hospitalization, including ICU admission, was 7 (5–12) days. Favipiravir (n = 328), lopinavir/ritonavir (n = 55), and oseltamivir (n = 761) were administered as antiviral agents, and hydroxychloroquine (HCQ, n = 1,382) and azithromycin (n = 738) were used for their immunomodulatory activity. Lopinavir/ritonavir (β [95% CI]: 4.71 [2.31–7.11];p = 0.001), favipiravir (β [95% CI]: 3.55 [2.56–4.55];p = 0.001) and HCQ (β [95% CI]: 0.84 [0.02–1.67];p = 0.046) were associated with increased risk of lengthy hospital stays. Furthermore, favipiravir was associated with increased risks of ICU admission (OR [95% CI]: 3.02 [1.70–5.35];p = 0.001) and invasive mechanical ventilation requirement (OR [95% CI]: 2.94 [1.28–6.75];p = 0.011). Conclusion Our findings demonstrated that antiviral drugs including lopinavir, ritonavir, and favipiravir were associated with negative clinical outcomes such as increased risks for lengthy hospital stay, ICU admission, and invasive mechanical ventilation requirement. Therefore, repurposing such agents without proven clinical evidence might not be the best approach for COVID-19 treatment.

A novel intubation prediction model for patients hospitalized with COVID-19: the OTO-COVID-19 scoring model.

OBJECTIVE: The method for predicting the risk of intubation in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is yet to be standardized. This study aimed to introduce a new disease prognosis scoring model that may predict the intubation risk based on the symptoms, signs, and laboratory tests of patients hospitalized with the diagnosis of COVID-19. METHOD: This cross-sectional retrospective study analyzed the intubation status of 733 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 diagnosis between March and December 2020 at Ondokuz Mayis University Faculty of Medicine, Turkey, based on 33 variables. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to select the variables that significantly affect intubation, which constitute the risk factors. The Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detection algorithm, one of the data mining methods, was used to determine the threshold values of the important variables for intubation classification. RESULTS: The following variables found were mostly associated with intubation: C-reactive protein, lactate dehydrogenase, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, age, lymphocyte count, and malignancy. The logistic function based on these variables correctly predicted 81.13% of intubated (sensitivity), 99.52% of nonintubated (specificity), and 96.86% of both intubated and nonintubated (accurate classification rate) patients. The scoring model revealed the following risk statuses for the intubated patients: very high risk, 75.47%; moderate risk, 20.75%; and very low risk, 3.77%. CONCLUSIONS: On the basis of certain variables measured at admission, the OTO-COVID-19 scoring model may help clinicians identify patients at the risk of intubation and subsequently provide a prompt and effective treatment at the earliest.

The predictors of COVID-19 mortality in a nationwide cohort of Turkish patients.

The COVID-19-related death rate varies between countries and is affected by various risk factors. This multicenter registry study was designed to evaluate the mortality rate and the related risk factors in Turkey. We retrospectively evaluated 1500 adults with COVID-19 from 26 centers who were hospitalized between March 11 and July 31, 2020. In the study group, 1041 and 459 cases were diagnosed as definite and highly probable cases, respectively. There were 993 PCR-positive cases (66.2%). Among all cases, 1144 (76.3%) were diagnosed with non-severe pneumonia, whereas 212 (14.1%) had severe pneumonia. Death occurred in 67 patients, corresponding to a mortality rate of 4.5% (95% CI:3.5-5.6). The univariate analysis demonstrated that various factors, including male sex, age ≥65 years and the presence of dyspnea or confusion, malignity, chronic obstructive lung disease, interstitial lung disease, immunosuppressive conditions, severe pneumonia, multiorgan dysfunction, and sepsis, were positively associated with mortality. Favipiravir, hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin were not associated with survival. Following multivariate analysis, male sex, severe pneumonia, multiorgan dysfunction, malignancy, sepsis and interstitial lung diseases were found to be independent risk factors for mortality. Among the biomarkers, procalcitonin levels on the 3rd-5th days of admission showed the strongest associations with mortality (OR: 6.18; 1.6-23.93). This study demonstrated that the mortality rate in hospitalized patients in the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic was a serious threat and that those patients with male sex, severe pneumonia, multiorgan dysfunction, malignancy, sepsis and interstitial lung diseases were at increased risk of mortality; therefore, such patients should be closely monitored.