An international characterisation of patients hospitalised with COVID-19 and a comparison with those previously hospitalised with influenza.
Burn E., You SC., Sena AG., Kostka K., Abedtash H., Abrahão MTF., Alberga A., Alghoul H., Alser O., Alshammari TM., Areia C., Banda JM., Cho J., Culhane AC., Davydov A., DeFalco FJ., Duarte-Salles T., DuVall S., Falconer T., Gao W., Golozar A., Hardin J., Hripcsak G., Huser V., Jeon H., Jing Y., Jung CY., Kaas-Hansen BS., Kaduk D., Kent S., Kim Y., Kolovos S., Lane JCE., Lee H., Lynch KE., Makadia R., Matheny ME., Mehta P., Morales DR., Natarajan K., Nyberg F., Ostropolets A., Park RW., Park J., Posada JD., Prats-Uribe A., Rao G., Reich C., Rho Y., Rijnbeek P., Sathappan SMK., Schilling LM., Schuemie M., Shah NH., Shoaibi A., Song S., Spotnitz M., Suchard MA., Swerdel JN., Vizcaya D., Volpe S., Wen H., Williams AE., Yimer BB., Zhang L., Zhuk O., Prieto-Alhambra D., Ryan P.
Background: To better understand the profile of individuals with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), we characterised individuals hospitalised with COVID-19 and compared them to individuals previously hospitalised with influenza. Methods: We report the characteristics (demographics, prior conditions and medication use) of patients hospitalised with COVID-19 between December 2019 and April 2020 in the US (Columbia University Irving Medical Center [CUIMC], STAnford Medicine Research data Repository [STARR-OMOP], and the Department of Veterans Affairs [VA OMOP]) and Health Insurance Review & Assessment [HIRA] of South Korea. Patients hospitalised with COVID-19 were compared with patients previously hospitalised with influenza in 2014-19. Results: 6,806 (US: 1,634, South Korea: 5,172) individuals hospitalised with COVID-19 were included. Patients in the US were majority male (VA OMOP: 94%, STARR-OMOP: 57%, CUIMC: 52%), but were majority female in HIRA (56%). Age profiles varied across data sources. Prevalence of asthma ranged from 7% to 14%, diabetes from 18% to 43%, and hypertensive disorder from 22% to 70% across data sources, while between 9% and 39% were taking drugs acting on the renin-angiotensin system in the 30 days prior to their hospitalisation. Compared to 52,422 individuals hospitalised with influenza, patients admitted with COVID-19 were more likely male, younger, and, in the US, had fewer comorbidities and lower medication use. Conclusions: Rates of comorbidities and medication use are high among individuals hospitalised with COVID-19. However, COVID-19 patients are more likely to be male and appear to be younger and, in the US, generally healthier than those typically admitted with influenza.