Findings revealed for patients suffering cardiac arrest, either in or out of hospital, who were infected with COVID-19<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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MONDAY, Feb. 8, 2021 (HealthDay News) — Among patients who suffer a cardiac arrest either in or out of hospital, those who are infected with COVID-19 are more likely to die than those who are not infected with COVID-19, according to a study published online Feb. 5 in the European Heart Journal<\/em>.<\/p>\n Pedram Sultanian, from University of Gothenburg in Sweden, and colleagues used data from the Swedish Registry for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (Jan. 1 to July 20, 2020) to identify 1,946 cases of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) and 1,080 cases of in-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA). Characteristics and outcomes of IHCA and OHCA were compared for the pandemic and prepandemic periods.<\/p>\n The researchers found that during the pandemic, 10.0 percent of OHCAs and 16.1 percent of IHCAs had ongoing COVID-19. The odds ratio (OR) for 30-day mortality in OHCA cases was 3.40 in COVID-19-positive patients, with a corresponding hazard ratio (HR) of 1.45, compared with COVID-19-negative patients. The adjusted 30-day survival rate was lower among patients with COVID-19 than patients without COVID-19 (4.7 versus 9.8 percent); 30-day survival was 7.6 percent in the prepandemic period. Among cases of IHCA, the odds for 30-day mortality were higher for COVID-19-positive status versus COVID-19-negative status (OR, 2.27), with a corresponding HR of 1.48. Following IHCA, adjusted 30-day survival was 23.1 percent in patients with COVID-19 compared with 39.5 percent in patients without COVID-19 and 36.4 percent in the prepandemic period.<\/p>\n “Our study clearly shows that cardiac arrest and COVID-19 is a very lethal combination,” Sultanian said in a statement. “Patients with the coronavirus should be monitored intensively and measures taken to prevent cardiac arrest, for instance with the use of continuous heart monitors for patients at high risk.”<\/p>\n