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COVID-19: Highlighting Health Disparities in the Los Angeles Latinx Community.
Casillas, Ernesto; Wu, Gloria; Iantorno, Stefano; Ning, Weihuang Vivian; Choi, Joon; Chan, Patrick; Lee, May M.
  • Casillas E; Department of Internal Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
  • Wu G; Department of Internal Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
  • Iantorno S; Department of Internal Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
  • Ning WV; Department of Internal Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
  • Choi J; Department of Internal Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
  • Chan P; Department of Internal Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
  • Lee MM; Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC, Los Angeles, CA, USA maymlee@med.usc.edu.
Clin Med Res ; 19(4): 161-168, 2021 12.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1581439
ABSTRACT

Objective:

Characterization of COVID-19 in the Latinx community is necessary for guiding public health initiatives, health system policy, clinical management practices, and improving outcomes. Our aim was to describe the socioeconomic background and clinical profile of patients with COVID-19 at a large public hospital in Los Angeles to improve health disparities leading to poor outcomes during the pandemic.Design, Setting and

Participants:

A single center retrospective cross-sectional study of all patients with a positive polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) who presented to Los Angeles County (LAC)+University of Southern California (USC) Medical Center between March 15, 2020 and April 30, 2020.

Methods:

We describe patient characteristics, socioeconomic factors, laboratory findings, and outcomes of the first 278 patients to present to LAC+USC Medical Center with COVID-19.

Results:

Patients self-identified as Hispanic (82.4%) or non-Hispanic (17.6%). Hispanic patients presented later from symptom onset (6 days vs 3 days, P = 0.027) and had higher post-intubation mortality (40.9% vs. 33.3%, P = 1), intensive care unit (ICU) mortality (31.1% vs. 22.2%, P = 0.87), and overall mortality (11.1% vs 10.2%, P = 1). However, the difference in admission rates, mechanical ventilation rates, and overall mortality rates were not statistically significant. A majority of patients, 275/278 (98.9%), reported residency ZIP codes in areas of higher population density, higher percentage of Latinx, born outside the United States, lower median income, and lower high school graduation rate when compared to the rest of Los Angeles County. Regression analysis within the Hispanic cohort found that age, history of hypertension, history of diabetes, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and C-reactive protein (CRP) were predictors of mechanical ventilation and mortality.

Conclusion:

We show the Latinx community has been disproportionally affected by the pandemic in Los Angeles and we identified multiple socioeconomic and clinical characteristics that predispose this population to COVID-19 infection. This study highlights the need for change in local and national strategies to protect vulnerable communities during public health outbreaks.
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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: COVID-19 Type of study: Cohort study / Observational study / Prognostic study / Randomized controlled trials Limits: Humans Country/Region as subject: North America Language: English Journal: Clin Med Res Year: 2021 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: Cmr.2021.1654

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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: COVID-19 Type of study: Cohort study / Observational study / Prognostic study / Randomized controlled trials Limits: Humans Country/Region as subject: North America Language: English Journal: Clin Med Res Year: 2021 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: Cmr.2021.1654