This site is intended for health professionals only

Which groups of patients are at highest risk from COVID-19 infection?

To date there has been no systematic evaluation of the extent to which common comorbidities increase patient’s risk of disease progression when infected with COVID-19.

However, a recent meta-analysis has provided a quantitative assessment of the risks of various comorbidities among those infected with COVID-19.

Researchers undertook a literature review up to 1 March 2020 which identified six studies including 1558 patients with COVID-19, of which 324 (20.8%) were severe and the risk of disease progression was expressed in terms of the odds ratio (OR).

The results indicated that patients with COPD had a 5.9-fold higher risk (OR = 5.97) of disease progression compared with those without the condition. There was a lower but still significant risk of disease aggravation in patients with cardiovascular disease (OR = 2.93), diabetes (OR = 2.47) and hypertension (OR = 2.29).

Article continues below this sponsored advert
Featured Image
Explore the latest advances in cardiovascular care delivered by renowned experts from recognised Centres of Excellence and other NHS trusts around the UK. Gain CPD, put your burning questions to the experts, and boost your confidence when it comes to care for your patients.
Advertisement

In contrast, there did not appear to be a correlation between liver or kidney disease and malignant tumours. A noted limitation of the data was the small sample size and the fact that many patients had more than one co-morbidity which may indicate that the risks were under-estimated.

Nevertheless, these data are of value in the development of strategies to minimise the risks for these patient groups.

Reference
Wang B et al. Does comorbidity increase the risk of patients with COVID-19: evidence from meta-analysis. Aging 2020;12(7):6049-57.






Be in the know
Subscribe to Hospital Pharmacy Europe newsletter and magazine

x