Diabetes increases the risk of COVID-19 in an altitude dependent manner: An analysis of 1,280,806 Mexican patients.
PLoS One
; 16(8): e0255144, 2021.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1339409
ABSTRACT
AIMS:
The objective of this study is to analyze how the impact of Diabetes Mellitus [DM] in patients with COVID-19 varies according to altitudinal gradient.METHODS:
We obtained 1,280,806 records from adult patients with COVID-19 and DM to analyze the probability of COVID-19, development of COVID-19 pneumonia, hospitalization, intubation, admission to the Intensive Care Unit [ICU] and case-fatality rates [CFR]. Variables were controlled by age, sex and altitude of residence to calculate adjusted prevalence and prevalence ratios.RESULTS:
Patients with DM had a 21.8% higher prevalence of COVID-19 and an additional 120.2% higher prevalence of COVID-19 pneumonia. The adjusted prevalence was also higher for these outcomes as well as for hospitalization, intubation and ICU admission. COVID-19 and pneumonia patients with DM had a 97.0% and 19.4% higher CFR, respectively. With increasing altitudes, the probability of being a confirmed COVID-19 case and the development of pneumonia decreased along CFR for patients with and without DM. However, COVID-19 patients with DM were more likely to require intubation when residing at high altitude.CONCLUSIONS:
The study suggests that patients with DM have a higher probability of being a confirmed COVID-19 case and developing pneumonia. Higher altitude had a protective relationship against SARS-CoV-2 infection; however, it may be associated with more severe cases in patients with and without DM. High altitude decreases CFR for all COVID-19 patients. Our work also shows that women are less affected than men regardless of altitude.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Diabetes Mellitus
/
Altitude
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Adult
/
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
Country/Region as subject:
Mexico
Language:
English
Journal:
PLoS One
Journal subject:
Science
/
Medicine
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Similar
MEDLINE
...
LILACS
LIS