Faculty Opinions recommendation of Presenting Characteristics, Comorbidities, and Outcomes Among 5700 Patients Hospitalized With COVID-19 in the New York City Area.
There have been several case series reports from China of the characteristics, comorbidities and outcomes of patients admitted to hospital with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) {1, 2}. This is the first case series report of a large number of patients admitted to 12 hospitals in New York City, USA. The patients were those admitted to hospital between 1 March 2020 and 4 April 2020 with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which was confirmed by a positive result on polymerase chain reaction testing of a nasopharyngeal swab. There were 5,700 patients, median age 63 years, 60% male. The most common comorbidities were hypertension (57%), obesity (42%) and diabetes mellitus (34%). Outcomes were assessed for 2634 patients who were either discharged or had died by the study end-point. Of these, 14% were treated in intensive care, 12% received invasive mechanical ventilation and 21% died. Mortality for those requiring mechanical ventilation was 88% - in those aged 18-65 years mortality was 76% and in those aged 66 years and above mortality was 97%. Of those who were discharged, 2.2% were readmitted during the study period. This is an interesting case series, showing similar results to those presented from China, particularly the high mortality amongst those needing invasive mechanical ventilation. There are two important public health implications. First, persons who are obese, with hypertension and with diabetes mellitus are at risk of severe COVID-19 disease: they are a vulnerable group for whom strict maintenance of social distancing is essential. Second, discharge from hospital may not be the end of the journey and continued surveillance is required to assess whether readmission might be necessary if further deterioration occurs when back at home.