This year’s top COVID-19 stories in pulmonology

Healio Pulmonology has compiled the top news on COVID-19 posted in 2023.

Even though the federal COVID-19 public health emergency declaration ended in May 2023, COVID-19 research continued to make headlines. Top COVID-19 stories from this year focused on the discovery of a possible mechanism for poor oxygenation in severe COVID-19, long-term anxiety and depression among COVID-19 survivors treated with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and the presence of lung abnormalities 2 years after the infection.

Here are Healio’s top 10 most-read stories on COVID-19 from 2023.

Researchers discover possible mechanism for poor oxygenation in severe COVID-19

Researchers observed immunoglobulin A autoantibodies that target lung surfactant proteins B and C in patients with severe COVID-19, according to study results published in American Journal of Respiratory Medicine and Critical Care. Read more.

Anxiety, depression symptoms persist at 1 year among COVID-19 ECMO survivors

Patients treated with ECMO for COVID-19 acute respiratory disease had poorer physical and mental health 1 year later, according to study results published in American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Read more.

Lung abnormalities persist in some patients 2 years after COVID-19 infection

Thirty-nine percent of patients who suffered a COVID-19 infection had interstitial lung abnormalities 2 years following the illness, according to study results published in Radiology. Read more.

Recorded cough sounds may indicate COVID-19 disease severity

Evaluating cough sounds of patients with COVID-19 could help determine the severity of their condition and lead to quicker treatment for those with severe disease, according to results published in ERJ Open Research. Read more.

Delayed intubation linked to poor survival among mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients

Intubation after 24 hours in the ICU for patients with COVID-19 receiving mechanical ventilation resulted in poorer mortality outcomes than early intubation, according to study results published in European Respiratory Journal. Read more.

Diaphragm muscle weakness linked to persistent shortness of breath following COVID-19

Fifteen months following COVID-19 hospitalization, both ventilated and nonventilated patients displayed diaphragm muscle weakness, according to results published in American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Read more.

Obstructive sleep apnea heightens risk for COVID-19, severe complications

Adults with obstructive sleep apnea faced elevated risks for developing COVID-19 and experiencing COVID-19-related complications, according to study results published in Thorax. Read more.

Lung sequelae, lingering symptoms remain 1 year after COVID-19 hospitalization

Many survivors of severe to critical COVID-19 had lung sequelae and lingering symptoms lasting up to 1 year after their infection, according to study results published in European Respiratory Journal. Read more.

Less frequent coughs linked to increased risk for intubation, death in COVID-19 patients

Patients hospitalized with COVID-19 who coughed 3.4 times per hour or less based on digital cough monitoring faced a greater risk for intubation or death, according to study results published in Journal of Biomedical Informatics. Read more.

Patients with asthma, COPD, ILD have reduced COVID vaccine protection

Patients with asthma, COPD and interstitial lung disease have reduced SARS-CoV-2 vaccine-specific antibody, B-cell and T-cell responses, which signals poorer protection against COVID-19, according to results published in ERJ Open Research. Read more.