Severe COVID-19 significantly increases risk for mortality within 12 months of diagnosis
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Patients with severe COVID-19 had more than twice the risk for mortality within 12 months of diagnosis compared with those who had mild or moderate disease or were not infected, data showed.
The increased risk for mortality was particularly high in individuals aged younger than 65 years, according to researchers.
“Post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 is not well understood,” Arch G. Mainous III, PhD, a professor in the department of health services research, management and policy at the University of Florida, and colleagues wrote in Frontiers in Medicine.
Therefore, they analyzed the electronic health records of 13,638 patients (64.5% aged < 65 years; 41.6% men; 63.8% white) within one health system and followed them for 12 months after results of a COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction test were recorded. In the entire cohort, 178 patients had severe COVID-19 and were hospitalized for any reason during the first 30 days of their follow-up period, 246 had mild or moderate COVID-19 and 13,214 had tested negative for SARS-CoV-2. A total of 2,686 patients died during the follow-up period.
According to Mainous and colleagues, the adjusted all-cause mortality risk after 12 months was significantly higher in patients with severe COVID-19 compared with individuals who did not have the disease (HR = 2.5; 95% CI, 2.02-3.09) and patients with mild or moderate COVID-19 (HR = 1.87; 95% CI, 1.28-2.74). The researchers wrote that “the vast majority of deaths — 79.5% — were for causes other than respiratory or cardiovascular conditions.”
Patients younger than 65 years who had severe COVID-19 had more than three times the risk for mortality after 12 months compared with individuals who did not have COVID-19 (HR = 3.33; 95% CI, 2.35-4.73) and more than twice the risk compared with patients who had mild or moderate COVID-19 (HR = 2.83; 95% CI, 1.59-5.04). Patients aged 65 years and older with severe COVID-19 were at increased risk for mortality after 12 months compared with individuals who did not have the disease (HR = 2.17; 95% CI, 1.66-2.84) but not patients with mild or moderate COVID-19 (HR = 1.41; 95% CI, 0.84-2.34).
“These novel findings identify critical areas for future research and demonstrate the pervasive nature of COVID-19 sequelae,” Mainous and colleagues wrote. “They also suggest that individuals are dying of a variety of conditions.”
In a press release, Mainous said the findings also underscore the importance of being “even more vigilant in decreasing severe episodes of COVID-19.”
“Taking your chances and hoping for successful treatment in the hospital doesn’t convey the full picture of the impact of COVID-19,” he said. “Our recommendation at this point is to use preventive measures, such as vaccination, to prevent severe episodes of COVID-19.”
References
Mainous AG, et al. Front Med. 2021;doi:10.3389/fmed.2021.778434.
Survivors of severe Covid-19 may have increased risk of death within 12 months of illness. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/936158. Published Dec. 1, 2021. Accessed Dec. 20, 2021.