Factors Associated with Mortality Among Elderly People in the COVID-19 Pandemic (SARS-CoV-2): A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

The objective of this meta-analysis was to evaluate the factors associated with mortality of elderly Italians diagnosed with the new coronavirus who resided in institutions or who were hospitalized as a result of the disease. Methods: A systematic review following the recommenda-tions of The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI), where the PEO strategy was utilized - Population, Exposure and Outcome. P, being the elderly over 65 years old. E, the SARS-CoV_2 pandemic. O, mortality. The NCBI / PubMed, LILACS, EMBASE and CINAHL databases were used until July 31, 2020.; Results: Five Italian studies were included in the meta-analysis, with the number of elderly people varying between 18 and 1591 patients. The main morbidities presented by the elderly in the studies were: dementia, diabetes, chronic kidney disease and hypertension. Conclusions: The factors as-sociated with the mortality of elderly Italian people diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 who lived in in-stitutions or who were hospitalized because of the disease were evaluated. It was found that de-mentia, diabetes, chronic kidney disease and hypertension are the main the main diagnosed dis-eases for mortality in elderly people with Covid-19.

Comparative features and outcomes of major neurological complications of COVID‐19

“…Infection severity, marked by the presence of dyspnea, might also add to the worse outcome at discharge and the higher risk of in-hospital death. Our data are in keeping with the higher-than-expected mortality of older patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 who lived in institutions or were hospitalized with the disease [16]. In that study, dementia, diabetes, chronic kidney disease and hypertension were the main risk factors for death.…”

Comorbidities and increased mortality of COVID-19 among the elderly: A systematic review

“…The most frequently studied comorbidities were cardiovascular diseases in reviewed articles, while other conditions were comparatively underrepresented. Our observations on comorbidities and COVID-19 mortality are confirmed by two meta-analyses which found that chronic kidney diseases (RR: 3.96), dementia (RR: 3.67), familial hypercholesterolemia (RR: 3.27), cardiovascular diseases (OR: 2.46), COPD (RR: 2.19), diabetes (RR: 1.90 and OR: 1.76), and hypertension (RR: 1.37 and OR: 2.10) significantly increased the mortality among elderly patients with COVID-19 [36,37].…”

Coronavirus Disease-2019 in Older People with Cognitive Impairment

“…From the first wave of COVID-19, the dangerousness of the COVID-19 pandemic to patients with dementia worried the medical community. 2,3 Epidemiologic data quickly highlighted the increased risk in patients suffering from dementia, not only of infection, but also of severe forms, with a frequent need for hospitalization and a high risk of death, [3][4][5][6] as well as specific complications related to their behavior disturbances.…”

“…7 This increased risk of infection can be explained by the difficulty in implementing protective measures and in particular in wearing the mask while living in an environment where many health care professionals circulate, as well as other potentially sick patients who do not observe the protective measures. 5 A meta-analysis was published in May 2021 6 to evaluate factors associated with mortality in older adults with COVID-19. After adjustment, dementia was an independent risk factor for death (RR, 3.6; 95% CI, 2.4-5.5) that was significantly higher than other classically recognized pathologies as a risk factor for death (diabetes RR, 1.9 [95% CI, 1.5-2.3], hypertension RR, 1.3 [95% CI, 1.2-1.5], chronic obstructive pulmonary disease RR, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.5-3.1).…”