ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: As of June 15, 2020, a cumulative total of 7,823,289 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been reported across 216 countries and territories worldwide. However, there is little information on the clinical characteristics and outcomes of critically ill patients with severe COVID-19 who were admitted to intensive care units (ICUs) in Latin America. The present study evaluated the clinical characteristics and outcomes of critically ill patients with severe COVID-19 who were admitted to ICUs in Mexico. METHODS: This was a multicenter observational study that included 164 critically ill patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 who were admitted to 10 ICUs in Mexico, from April 1 to April 30, 2020. Demographic data, comorbid conditions, clinical presentation, treatment, and outcomes were collected and analyzed. The date of final follow-up was June 4, 2020. RESULTS: A total of 164 patients with severe COVID-19 were included in this study. The mean age of patients was 57.3 years (SD 13.7), 114 (69.5%) were men, and 6.0% were healthcare workers. Comorbid conditions were common in patients with critical COVID-19: 38.4% of patients had hypertension and 32.3% had diabetes. Compared to survivors, nonsurvivors were older and more likely to have diabetes, hypertension or other conditions. Patients presented to the hospital a median of 7 days (IQR 4.5-9) after symptom onset. The most common presenting symptoms were shortness of breath, fever, dry cough, and myalgias. One hundred percent of patients received invasive mechanical ventilation for a median time of 11 days (IQR 6-14). A total of 139 of 164 patients (89.4%) received vasopressors, and 24 patients (14.6%) received renal replacement therapy during hospitalization. Eighty-five (51.8%) patients died at or before 30 days, with a median survival of 25 days. Age (OR, 1.05; 95% CI, 1.02-1.08; p<0.001) and C-reactive protein levels upon ICU admission (1.008; 95% CI, 1.003-1.012; p<0.001) were associated with a higher risk of in-hospital death. ICU length of stay was associated with reduced in-hospital mortality risk (OR, 0.89; 95% CI, 0.84-0.94; p<0.001). CONCLUSIONS: This observational study of critically ill patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 who were admitted to the ICU in Mexico demonstrated that age and C-reactive protein level upon ICU admission were associated with in-hospital mortality, and the overall hospital mortality rate was high. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04336345.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Critical Illness , Humans , Intensive Care Units , Male , Mexico/epidemiology , Middle Aged , SARS-CoV-2Subject(s)
Asthma , Eosinophils , Humans , Leukocyte Count , Magnesium Sulfate , Nebulizers and Vaporizers , Phenotype , SputumABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Dysphagia associated with neurological disease is an important clinical manifestation in the diagnosis of injury that justifies the compression of the brainstem and lower cranial nerves. OBJECTIVE: To emphasize the study of dysphagia in a patient with Chiari I malformation associated with syringomyelia in the absence of primary gastroenterological symptoms. CLINICAL CASE: We describe the case of a 62 year-old woman with oropharyngeal dysphagia of six years of evolution, cervicobrachialgia, ptosis and facial diplexia. CONCLUSIONS: Magnetic resonance imaging is an essential element for establishing the etiologic diagnosis of neurogenic dysphagia.
Antecedentes: la disfagia con afección neurológica constituye un dato clínico significativo en el diagnóstico de lesiones que justifiquen la compresión del tronco cerebral y los nervios craneales bajos. Objetivo: destacar la importancia del estudio de la disfagia en una paciente con malformación de Chiari tipo I y siringomielia, sin síntomas gastroenterológicos primarios. Caso clínico: se comunica el caso de una mujer de 62 años de edad con disfagia orofaríngea de seis años de evolución, cervicobraquialgia, ptosis palpebral y diplejía facial. Conclusiones: el estudio por resonancia magnética constituye un elemento fundamental para establecer el diagnóstico causal de la disfagia neurogénica.