Covid-19: Course and prognosis in patients with severe clinical form

Abstract

Our aim is to identify factors of unfavorable prognostic significance in hospitalized patients with severe COVID-19, an analysis of clinical and demographic characteristics and routine laboratory tests was performed. For the following period: March - July 2023, 25 patients with severe COVID-19 needing intensive care and treatment were hospitalized in Military Medical Academy Sofia (Bulgaria). The diagnosis has been confirmed by RT-PCR analysis for SARS-CoV-2 detection. According to the prognosis, the target group of patients were divided into two groups - discharger and deceased. The average age of the analyzed cohort was 77.6 years. The most commonly reported clinical symptoms include fever, cough, shortness of breath, and neurological symptoms. We found that all patients with severe COVID-19 were comorbid and elderly. The average hospital stay in intensive care is 11.9 days. Nearly half of the cases had fatal outcome (12/25). Among the factors associated with the clinical severity of COVID-19 and mortality are advanced age, presence of chronic concomitant diseases, development of pneumonia and/or neurological complications, as well as deviations in some laboratory parameters.