Clinical characteristics and outcomes of hospitalized COVID-19 patients with COPD

ABSTRACT

Background

Although COPD is not one of the most common comorbidities in COVID-19 patients, it can be more fatal in this group. This study aimed to investigate the characteristics and prognosis of COPD patients among the population with COVID-19.

Research design and methods

Patients diagnosed with positive PCR test were included in our multicentered, retrospective study. Patients with airway obstruction (previous spirometry) were included in ‘COPD group’.

Results

The prevalence of COPD in COVID-19 patients was 4.96%(53/1069). There was a significant difference between COPD and non-COPD COVID-19 patients in terms of gender, mean age, presence of dyspnea, tachypnea, tachycardia, hypoxemia and presence of pneumonia. The mortality rate was 13.2% in COPD, 7% in non-COPD patients(p = 0.092). The significant predictors of mortality were higher age, lymphopenia (p < 0.001), hypoxemia (p = 0.028), high D-dimer level (p = 0.011), and presence of pneumonia (p = 0.043) in COVID-19 patients.

Conclusions

Our research is one of the first studies investigating characteristics of COPD patients with COVID-19 in Turkey. Although COPD patients had some poor prognostic features, there was no statistical difference between overall survival rates of two groups. Age, status of oxygenization, serum D-dimer level, lymphocyte count and pneumonia were significantly associated parameters with mortality in COVID-19.

KEYWORDS:

• COPD
• covid-19
• hypoxemia
• pneumonia
• prognosis

Author contributions

OT: conception and design, analysis and interpretation of the data; the drafting of the paper and the final approval of the version to be published.

BAY, PAT, AM: revising critically for intellectual content.

Declaration of interest

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

Reviewer disclosures

Peer reviewers on this manuscript have no relevant financial or other relationships to disclose.

Additional information

Funding

This paper was not funded.