IMPACT OF DIABETES AND OTHER PREEXISTING COMORBIDITIES ON MORTALITY AMONG COVID-19 HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS

Radu Tiberiu Vrabie; Andra Gabriela Vrabie; Gabriela Radulian; Gerogiana Mihaela Enache

doi:10.33695/rjcr.v7i1.234

Radu Tiberiu Vrabie U.M.F" Carol Davila", Bucuresti
Andra Gabriela Vrabie Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania
Gabriela Radulian Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania
Gerogiana Mihaela Enache Pompei Samarian County Emergency Hospital, Călărași, Romania

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33695/rjcr.v7i1.234

Keywords: Covid-19, diabetes, comorbidities, mortality

Abstract

There are over 700 million cases globally since oubreak of SARS-CoV-2 virus. From beginning medical health professionals reported some patients are at risk for severe COVID-19 disease. At first, Wuhan medical health researches revealed that diabetes represent the second most frequent underlying condition and suggested that its presence is strongly associated with high mortality rate. The correlation between the two diseases was observed, also, in New York, in a study where almost a third form hospitalized patients were diabetic patients. Later, Instituto Superiore di Sanita had published worrying statistical data related to death risk, up to 35.5%. Currently professional medical organizations consider diabetes not only influences strongly evolution of COVID-19 disease but also its presence increases mortality rate and risk of acute complications as renal injury or cetoacidosis. However the most frequent pre-existing condition in multiple studies is represented by hypertension. Recently a review from Cochrane Heart Group reveals that for hospitalized patients with COVID19 hypertension is the most frequent, followed by diabetes and ischemic heart disease. We conducted a retrospective observational study on 206 patients hospitalized with SARS-Cov2 infection from Călărași County Emergency Hospital at the peak of the 5^th wave of COVID-19. The aim of the study was to identify parameters that were correlated with death in COVID 19 hospitalized patients. We found that age and diabetes are correlated with death among COVID-19 hospitalized patients and that the increase of age by 1 year will increase the risk of death during hospitalization by 5%. Also, patients with type 2 diabetes had a risk for death, 3 times higher than patients without diabetes. Results from our study revealed that death risk was higher also for pre-existing complications of type 2 diabetes, like diabetic polyneuropathy and diabetic retinopathy, who were also corelated with the risk of death during hospitalization. We therefore concluded that diabetes and its microvascular complications can have a negative impact on survivor rate among COVID-19 hospitalized patients. We think that further studies are needed to fully comprehend the correlation between comorbidities and death risk among COVID-19 patients.

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