COVID-19 in patients recovering from cardiac surgery: A surprising mild disease course.
J Card Surg
; 36(3): 909-912, 2021 Mar.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1028194
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
We describe the baseline, operative, and postoperative features of a group of 18 patients who contracted the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) infection in a rehabilitation facility after cardiac surgery, and present some potential explanations for the surprisingly benign course of the COVID-19 in this cohort.METHODS:
All patients were operated on an urgent or emergency basis (acute aortic syndrome, 3; refractory heart failure, 12; and endocarditis, 3) during the first lockdown period of the COVID-19 pandemic. The mean age was 70 years, and 12 patients were male. After the diagnosis of COVID-19, patients were treated according to the most recent recommendations. Eleven asymptomatic patients were discharged home or to a COVID-19 hotel and underwent close monitoring. Patients with fever, dyspnea, or a significant rise of the polymerase chain reaction levels were hospitalized, three received antivirals, three azithromicyne, and five hydroxychloroquine. Nasal swabs were repeated on a weekly basis, and all patients were quarantined until the collection of two consecutive negative samples.RESULTS:
Diversely from other observations on perioperative COVID-19 reporting mortality rates of 30%-40%, the COVID-19 had a benign course in our cohort only seven patients required hospitalization, and one required short intensive care unit admission. There were no deaths, and at the latest follow-up, all patients had been discharged home.COMMENT:
Our data show that the SARS-CoV2 infection after cardiac surgery may have a benign course. Further studies are needed to investigate the relationship between the timing of the infection, some potentially protective therapies (e.g., anticoagulants), and the course of the COVID-19.Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
RNA, Viral
/
COVID-19
/
Heart Diseases
/
Cardiac Surgical Procedures
Type of study:
Cohort study
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
English
Journal:
J Card Surg
Journal subject:
Cardiology
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Jocs.15326
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