Validation of an admission coagulation panel for risk stratification of COVID-19 patients.

BACKGROUND: There is limited data on the markers of coagulation and hemostatic activation (MOCHA) profile in Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and its ability to identify COVID-19 patients at risk for thrombotic events and other complications. METHODS: Hospitalized patients with confirmed SARS-COV-2 from four Atlanta hospitals were included in this observational cohort study and underwent admission testing of MOCHA parameters (plasma d-dimer, prothrombin fragment 1.2, thrombin-antithrombin complex, fibrin monomer). Clinical outcomes included deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, access line thrombosis, ICU admission, intubation and mortality. MAIN RESULTS: Of 276 patients (mean age 59 ± 6.4 years, 47% female, 62% African American), 45 (16%) had a thrombotic endpoint. Each MOCHA parameter was independently associated with a thrombotic event (p<0.05) and ≥ 2 abnormalities was associated with thrombotic endpoints (OR 3.3, 95% CI 1.2-8.8) as were admission D-dimer ≥ 2000 ng/mL (OR 3.1, 95% CI 1.5-6.6) and ≥ 3000 ng/mL (OR 3.6, 95% CI 1.6-7.9). However, only ≥ 2 MOCHA abnormalities were associated with ICU admission (OR 3.0, 95% CI 1.7-5.2) and intubation (OR 3.2, 95% CI 1.6-6.4). MOCHA and D-dimer cutoffs were not associated with mortality. MOCHA with <2 abnormalities (26% of the cohort) had 89% sensitivity and 93% negative predictive value for a thrombotic endpoint. CONCLUSIONS: An admission MOCHA profile is useful to risk-stratify COVID-19 patients for thrombotic complications and more effective than isolated d-dimer for predicting risk of ICU admission and intubation.

Clinical Outcomes of Critically III Patients with COVID-19 by Race.

BACKGROUND: Studies of COVID-19 have shown that African Americans have been affected by the virus at a higher rate compared to other races. This cohort study investigated comorbidities and clinical outcomes by race among COVID-19 patients admitted to the intensive care unit. METHODS: This is a case series of critically ill patients admitted with COVID-19 to an academic healthcare system in Atlanta, Georgia. The study included all critically ill hospitalized patients between March 6, 2020, and May 5, 2020. Clinical outcomes during hospitalization included mechanical ventilation, renal replacement therapy, and mortality stratified by race. RESULTS: Of 288 patients included (mean age, 63 ± 16 years; 45% female), 210 (73%) were African American. African Americans had significantly higher rates of comorbidities compared to other races, including hypertension (80% vs 59%, P = 0.001), diabetes (49% vs 34%, P = 0.026), and mean BMI (33 kg/m2 vs 28 kg/m2, P < 0.001). Despite African Americans requiring continuous renal replacement therapy during hospitalization at higher rates than other races (27% vs 13%, P = 0.011), rates of intubation, intensive care unit length of stay, and overall mortality (30% vs 24%, P = 0.307) were similar. CONCLUSION: This racially diverse series of critically ill COVID-19 patients shows that despite higher rates of comorbidities at hospital admission in African Americans compared with other races, there was no significant difference in mortality.

C-Reactive protein as a prognostic indicator in hospitalized patients with COVID-19.

Recent studies have reported that CRP levels are elevated in patients with COVID-19 and may correlate with severity of disease and disease progression. We conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of the medical records of 268 adult patients, who were admitted to one of the six cohorted COVID ICUs across Emory Healthcare System and had at least two CRP values within the first seven days of admission to study the temporal progression of CRP and its association with all-cause in-hospital mortality. The median CRP during hospitalization for the entire cohort was 130 mg/L (IQR 82-191 mg/L), and the median CRP on ICU admission was 169 (IQR 111-234). The hospitalization-wide median CRP was significantly higher amongst the patients who died, compared to those who survived [206 mg/L (157-288 mg/L) vs 114 mg/L (72-160 mg/L), p<0.001]. CRP levels increased in a linear fashion during the first week of hospitalization and peaked on day 5. Compared to patients who died, those who survived had lower peak CRP levels and earlier declines. CRP levels were significantly higher in patients who died compared to those who survived (p<0.001). Our findings support the utility of daily CRP values in hospitalized COVID-19 patients and provide early thresholds during hospitalization that may facilitate risk stratification and prognostication.

Trends and diagnostic value of D-dimer levels in patients hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been associated with increased incidence of venous thromboembolic events (VTE) as well as mortality. D-dimer is a marker of fibrinolysis and has been used as a diagnostic and prognostic marker in VTE among other diseases. The purpose of our study is to describe outcomes from out center and to examine trends in D-dimer levels as it relates to VTE and mortality.Patients admitted with confirmed COVID-19 cases to Emory Healthcare from March 12, 2020 through April 6, 2020 with measured plasma D-dimer levels were included in our retrospective analysis. Relevant data about comorbidities, hospitalization course, laboratory results, and outcomes were analyzed.One hundred fifteen patients were included in our study. Mean age was 64 ±â€Š15 years, 47 (41%) females and 84 (73%) African-American. Hypertension was present in 83 (72%) and diabetes in 60 (52%). Mean duration of hospitalization was 19 ±â€Š11 days with 62 (54%) patients intubated (mean duration of 13 ±â€Š8 days). VTE was diagnosed in 27 (23%) patients (mean time to diagnosis 14 ±â€Š9 days). Median D-dimer within the first 7 days of hospitalization was higher (6450 vs. 1596 ng/mL, p < 0.001) in VTE cases compared to non-VTE cases, and was predictive of VTE (area under the curve [AUC] = 0.72, optimal threshold 2500 ng/mL) although not of mortality (AUC 0.55, P = .34). Change in D-dimer level (AUC = 0.72 P = .004) and rate of D-dimer rise (AUC = 0.75 P = .001) were also predictive of VTE, though neither predicted death (P > .05 for all). Within the first 7 days of hospitalization, peak D-dimer level of >2500 ng/mL and a rate of change exceeding 150 ng/mL/d were predictive of future diagnosis of VTE. Rise in D-dimer >2000 ng/mL within any 24 hour period through hospital day 10 had 75% sensitivity and 74% specificity for diagnosis of VTE.We found that both magnitude and rate of rise in d-dimer within the first 10 days of hospitalization are predictive of diagnosis of VTE but not mortality. These parameters may aid in identifying individuals with possible underlying VTE or at high risk for VTE, thereby guiding risk stratification and anticoagulation policies in COVID-19 patients.

Cerebrovascular events and outcomes in hospitalized patients with COVID-19: The SVIN COVID-19 Multinational Registry.

BACKGROUND: Severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been associated with a significant risk of thrombotic events in critically ill patients. AIM: To summarize the findings of a multinational observational cohort of patients with SARS-CoV-2 and cerebrovascular disease. METHODS: Retrospective observational cohort of consecutive adults evaluated in the emergency department and/or admitted with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) across 31 hospitals in four countries (1 February 2020-16 June 2020). The primary outcome was the incidence rate of cerebrovascular events, inclusive of acute ischemic stroke, intracranial hemorrhages (ICH), and cortical vein and/or sinus thrombosis (CVST). RESULTS: Of the 14,483 patients with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2, 172 were diagnosed with an acute cerebrovascular event (1.13% of cohort; 1130/100,000 patients, 95%CI 970-1320/100,000), 68/171 (40.5%) were female and 96/172 (55.8%) were between the ages 60 and 79 years. Of these, 156 had acute ischemic stroke (1.08%; 1080/100,000 95%CI 920-1260/100,000), 28 ICH (0.19%; 190/100,000 95%CI 130-280/100,000), and 3 with CVST (0.02%; 20/100,000, 95%CI 4-60/100,000). The in-hospital mortality rate for SARS-CoV-2-associated stroke was 38.1% and for ICH 58.3%. After adjusting for clustering by site and age, baseline stroke severity, and all predictors of in-hospital mortality found in univariate regression (p < 0.1: male sex, tobacco use, arrival by emergency medical services, lower platelet and lymphocyte counts, and intracranial occlusion), cryptogenic stroke mechanism (aOR 5.01, 95%CI 1.63-15.44, p < 0.01), older age (aOR 1.78, 95%CI 1.07-2.94, p = 0.03), and lower lymphocyte count on admission (aOR 0.58, 95%CI 0.34-0.98, p = 0.04) were the only independent predictors of mortality among patients with stroke and COVID-19. CONCLUSIONS: COVID-19 is associated with a small but significant risk of clinically relevant cerebrovascular events, particularly ischemic stroke. The mortality rate is high for COVID-19-associated cerebrovascular complications; therefore, aggressive monitoring and early intervention should be pursued to mitigate poor outcomes.

Ischemic stroke in COVID-19: An urgent need for early identification and management.

OBJECTIVE: In the setting of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2, a potential association of this disease with stroke has been suggested. We aimed to describe the characteristics of patients who were admitted with COVID-19 and had an acute ischemic stroke (AIS). METHODS: This is a case series of PCR-confirmed COVID-19 patients with ischemic stroke admitted to an academic health system in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia (USA) between March 24th, 2020 and July 17th, 2020. Demographic, clinical, and radiographic characteristics were described. RESULTS: Of 396 ischemic stroke patients admitted during this study period, 13 (2.5%) were also diagnosed with COVID-19. The mean age of patients was 61.6 ± 10.8 years, 10 (76.9%) male, 8 (61.5%) were Black Americans, mean time from last normal was 4.97 ± 5.1 days, and only one received acute reperfusion therapy. All 13 patients had at least one stroke-associated co-morbidity. The predominant pattern of ischemic stroke was embolic with 4 explained by atrial fibrillation. COVID-19 patients had a significantly higher rate of cryptogenic stroke than non-COVID-19 patients during the study period (69% vs 17%, p = 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: In our case series, ischemic stroke affected COVID-19 patients with traditional stroke risk factors at an age typically seen in non-COVID populations, and mainly affecting males and Black Americans. We observed a predominantly embolic pattern of stroke with a higher than expected rate of cryptogenic strokes, a prolonged median time to presentation and symptom recognition limiting the use of acute reperfusion treatments. These results highlight the need for increased community awareness, early identification, and management of AIS in COVID-19 patients.