ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: The antiviral efficacy of remdesivir is still controversial. We aimed to evaluate the impact of remdesivir use in patients admitted to our intensive care unit (ICU) with COVID-19. METHOD(S): A retrospective study of adult patients admitted to our hospital with COVID-19 infection from March 2020 to September 2021 was performed. Patients were divided into 2 groups;Group1 received remdesivir while Group2 did not. The primary outcomes studied were mortality rate, length of stay (LOS) in the ICU and the need of invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). Additional outcomes assessed were highest APACHE II during stay and inflammatory markers (Ferritin, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP)). Descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney-U and Chisquare methods were used. RESULT(S): 227 patients were included, median age was 57 years [46-68]. 122 (53.7%) were male. 113 patients were in Group1 vs 114 in Group2. Median age in Group1 is 58 years [45.75-68] vs 57 years [46.5-68] in Group2. In Group1, 64 (56.1%) were male vs 58 (51.3%). The median APACHE II score on admission for group1 was 8 [5-12] vs 9 [6-12]. The median SOFA score on admission for group1 was 2 [2-3] vs 2 [1-2.75]. The median ICHIKADO score on admission for group1 was 160 [120-200] vs 140 [110-180]. 24 (21.1%) patients died in group1 vs 21 (18.6%) in group2 x2(1, 227) = 0.218, p = 0.74. The median LOS of group1 was 7 [4-10] vs 7 [5-11] U(NGroup1=114, NGroup2=113)=6400, z=- 0.083, p=0.934. 16 (14%) patients in group1 needed IMV vs 22 (19.5%) in group 2, x2(1, 227) = 0.273, p = 0.291. The median of the highest APACHE II score in group1 was 10 [6- 17.5] vs 11 [7-15] U(NGroup1=114, NGroup2=112)=6163, z=-0.45, p=0.652. In group1, median ferritin, CRP and ESR were 486.6 [246.75-1184.5] ng/ml, 90.35 [39.48-135] mg/L, 85 [60-106.5] mm/hr, respectively vs. 493.3 [174.6- 1025.5] ng/ml, 69.6 [35.25-116.75] mg/L, 77 [47.5-110] mm/hr, U(NGroup1=114, NGroup2=107)=5614.5, z=- 1.022, p=0.307, U(NGroup1=56, NGroup2=34)=854, z=- 0.816, p=0.415, U(NGroup1=113, NGroup2=110)=5644.5, z=-1.185, p=0.236, respectively. CONCLUSION(S): There is no difference in mortality, severity scales nor inflammatory markers in patients that were treated with remdesivir compared to those who were not.