Pulmonary Function in People Living With Human Immunodeficiency Virus: A Meta-Analysis

Background: HIV can infect bronchial epithelial cells rendering individuals susceptible to lung damage. Our objective was to determine the effects of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection on pulmonary function tests. Methods: We performed a meta-analysis after conducting a literature search in PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and Virtual Health Library databases from inception to December 31st, 2022. We employed the inverse variance method with a random effects model to calculate the effect estimate as the mean difference (MD) and 95% confidence interval (CI). We calculated the heterogeneity with the I2 statistic and performed a meta-regression analysis by age, sex, smoking, CD4 T-cells count and antiretroviral therapy. We also conducted a sensitivity analysis according to the studies’ publication date, and excluding the study with the greatest weight in the effect. The PROSPERO registry number was CRD42023401105. Results: The meta-analysis included 20 studies, with 7621 living with HIV and 7410 control participants. The pooled MD (95%CI) for the predicted percentage of FEV1, FVC and DLCO were −3.12 (−5.17, −1.06); p=0.003, −1.51 (−3.04, 0.02); p=0.05, and −5.26 (−6.64, −3.87); p<0.001, respectively. The pooled MD for FEV1/FVC was −0.01 (−0.02, −0.01); p=0.002. In all cases, there was a considerable heterogeneity. The meta-regression analysis showed that among studies heterogeneity was not explained by patient age, smoking, CD4 T-cells count or antiretroviral therapy. Conclusion: Pulmonary function tests are impaired in people living with HIV, independently of age, smoking, CD4 T-cells count, and geographical region. (AU)

Pulmonary Function in People Living With Human Immunodeficiency Virus: A Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND: HIV can infect bronchial epithelial cells rendering individuals susceptible to lung damage. Our objective was to determine the effects of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection on pulmonary function tests. METHODS: We performed a meta-analysis after conducting a literature search in PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library and Virtual Health Library databases from inception to December 31st, 2022. We employed the inverse variance method with a random effects model to calculate the effect estimate as the mean difference (MD) and 95% confidence interval (CI). We calculated the heterogeneity with the I2 statistic and performed a meta-regression analysis by age, sex, smoking, CD4 T-cells count and antiretroviral therapy. We also conducted a sensitivity analysis according to the studies' publication date, and excluding the study with the greatest weight in the effect. The PROSPERO registry number was CRD42023401105. RESULTS: The meta-analysis included 20 studies, with 7621 living with HIV and 7410 control participants. The pooled MD (95%CI) for the predicted percentage of FEV1, FVC and DLCO were -3.12 (-5.17, -1.06); p=0.003, -1.51 (-3.04, 0.02); p=0.05, and -5.26 (-6.64, -3.87); p<0.001, respectively. The pooled MD for FEV1/FVC was -0.01 (-0.02, -0.01); p=0.002. In all cases, there was a considerable heterogeneity. The meta-regression analysis showed that among studies heterogeneity was not explained by patient age, smoking, CD4 T-cells count or antiretroviral therapy. CONCLUSION: Pulmonary function tests are impaired in people living with HIV, independently of age, smoking, CD4 T-cells count, and geographical region.

Recommendations for the prevention of healthcare-associated infections in nursing homes / Recomendaciones para la prevención de infecciones en residencias para mayores

Nursing homes (NH) conceptually should look as much like a home as possible. However NH have unquestionable similar ities with a nosocomium as they are places where many pa tients with underlying diseases and comorbidities accumulate. There is evidence of transmission of microorganisms between residents and between residents and caregivers. We have not found any recommendations specifically aimed at the prevention of nosocomial infections in NH by the major Public Health Agencies and, therefore, the Health Sciences Foundation (Fundación de Ciencias de la Salud) has convened a series of experts and 14 Spanish scientific societies to discuss recommendations that could guide NH personnel in establishing written programs for the control and reduction of these infections. The present document is the result of these deliberations and contains suggestions for establishing such control programs on a voluntary and flexible basis in NH. We also hope that the document can help the health authorities to encourage this control activity in the different territorial areas of Spain. In our opinion, it is necessary to draw up a written plan and establish the figure of a coordinator or person respon sible for implementing these projects. The document includes measures to be implemented and ways of quantifying the real ity of different problems and of monitoring the impact of the measures established (AU)

Las residencias de ancianos (NH) aunque conceptualmente deberían parecerse lo más posible a un hogar, tienen induda bles similitudes con un nosocomio ya que son lugares donde se acumulan muchos pacientes con enfermedades de base y comorbilidades y donde la transmisión de microorganismos en tre residentes y entre residentes y cuidadores es frecuente. No hemos encontrado recomendaciones específicamente dirigidas a la prevención de las infecciones nosocomiales en NH por parte de las principales Agencias de Salud Pública y, por ello, la Fundación de Ciencias de la Salud ha convocado a una serie de expertos y a 14 sociedades científicas españolas para de batir recomendaciones que puedan orientar al personal de las NH en el establecimiento de programas escritos para el control y reducción de estas infecciones. El presente documento es el resultado de estas deliberaciones y contiene sugerencias para establecer dichos programas de control de forma voluntaria y flexible. También esperamos que el documento pueda ayudar a las autoridades sanitarias a fomentar esta actividad de control en los distintos ámbitos territoriales de España. En nuestra opi nión, es necesario elaborar un plan por escrito y establecer la figura de un coordinador o responsable de la ejecución de estos proyectos. El documento incluye las medidas a implantar y las formas de cuantificar la realidad de los diferentes problemas y de monitorizar el impacto de las medidas establecidas (AU)

Projected effectiveness of dapagliflozin in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction in clinical practice.

Aim: To estimate the projected effectiveness of dapagliflozin in subjects with heart failure (HF) with reduced ejection fraction in clinical practice in Spain. Materials & methods: This multicenter cohort study included subjects aged 50 years or older consecutively hospitalized for HF in internal medicine departments in Spain. The projected clinical benefits of dapagliflozin were estimated based on results from the DAPA-HF trial. Results: A total of 1595 patients were enrolled, of whom 1199 (75.2%) were eligible for dapagliflozin. Within 1 year after discharge, 21.6% of patients eligible for dapagliflozin were rehospitalized for HF and 20.5% died. Full implementation of dapagliflozin led to an absolute risk reduction of 3.5% for mortality (number needed to treat = 28) and 6.5% (number needed to treat = 15) for HF readmission. Conclusion: Treatment with dapagliflozin in clinical practice may markedly reduce mortality and readmissions for HF.

Heart failure with reduced ejection fraction is a severe disease with a high risk of hospitalization and mortality. With this condition, the heart muscle cannot pump properly. This means that not enough blood is pumped from the heart, reducing the amount of oxygen to the body. Fortunately, there are treatments that reduce this risk, in patients with heart failure. SGLT2 inhibitors, including dapagliflozin, are among the first therapies given to patients with heart failure. In this study, we investigated the potential benefits of adding dapagliflozin to the treatment of patients admitted to the hospital in Spain for heart failure with reduced ejection fraction. Our data showed that dapagliflozin was able to reduce the risk of further events (e.g., heart attack) in these patients.

Atrial fibrillation as a new prognosis factor in chronic patients after hospitalization: the CHRONIBERIA index.

A collaborative project in different areas of Spain and Portugal was designed to find out the variables that influence the mortality after discharge and develop a prognostic model adapted to the current healthcare needs of chronic patients in an internal medicine ward. Inclusion criteria were being admitted to an Internal Medicine department and at least one chronic disease. Patients' physical dependence was measured through Barthel index (BI). Pfeiffer test (PT) was used to establish cognitive status. We conducted logistic regression and Cox proportional hazard models to analyze the influence of those variables on one-year mortality. We also developed an external validation once decided the variables included in the index. We enrolled 1406 patients. Mean age was 79.5 (SD = 11.5) and females were 56.5%. After the follow-up period, 514 patients (36.6%) died. Five variables were identified as significantly associated with 1 year mortality: age, being male, lower BI punctuation, neoplasia and atrial fibrillation. A model with such variables was created to estimate one-year mortality risk, leading to the CHRONIBERIA. A ROC curve was made to determine the reliability of this index when applied to the global sample. An AUC of 0.72 (0.7-0.75) was obtained. The external validation of the index was successful and showed an AUC of 0.73 (0.67-0.79). Atrial fibrillation along with an advanced age, being male, low BI score, or an active neoplasia in chronic patients could be critical to identify high risk multiple chronic conditions patients. Together, these variables constitute the new CHRONIBERIA index.

[Position of the international forum of internal medicine on habits, lifestyle changes and a healthy environment for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases]. / Posicionamiento del foro Internacional de Medicina Interna sobre Hábitos, modificaciones del Estilo de Vida y Ambiente Saludable para la Prevención de Enfermedades Cardiovasculares.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD), mainly ischemic heart disease and stroke, is the main cause of death worldwide and each year more people die from CVD than from any other cause. These data call for a paradigm shift, where health promotion and cardiovascular prevention will acquire a central role in health policies. From this perspective, dedicating time during the consultation to promoting the acquisition of heart-healthy habits would be indicated in all individuals, regardless of cardiovascular risk classification, the role of the internist being fundamental. This position document from the International Forum of Internal Medicine (FIMI) presents the main indications regarding changes in lifestyle and acquisition of healthy habits to prevent CVD. The different sections will address topics including: nutrition, physical activity, sedentary lifestyle, obesity, smoking, alcohol consumption, sleep, stress, environmental problems related to CVD and specific conditions in women. A section is included about starting CVD promotion and prevention measures at an early age, childhood and adolescence, also mentioning epigenetic aspects related to CVD. Social determinants in CVD are also taken into account, since some of these aspects, such as low socioeconomic level, modify cardiovascular risk and should be taken into account.

Las enfermedades cardiovasculares (ECV), principalmente la cardiopatía isquémica y el accidente cerebrovascular (ACV), constituyen la principal causa de muerte a nivel mundial y cada año mueren más personas por ECV que por cualquier otra causa. Estos datos requieren la necesidad de un cambio de paradigma, en donde la promoción de la salud y la prevención cardiovascular adquieran un papel central en las políticas sanitarias. Desde esta perspectiva, dedicar tiempo durante la consulta en promocionar la adquisición de hábitos cardiosaludables estaría indicado en todos los individuos, independientemente de la clasificación de riesgo cardiovascular, siendo fundamental el rol del médico internista en su función de médico de cabecera. En este documento de posicionamiento del Foro Internacional de Medicina Interna (FIMI) se presentan algunas pautas para recomendar e indicar modificaciones en el estilo de vida y adquisición de hábitos saludables para prevenir la ECV, que tienen el objetivo de ser una herramienta practica para el médico internista. Las diferentes secciones abordaran temas que incluyen: nutrición, actividad física, sedentarismo, obesidad, hábito tabáquico, consumo de alcohol, sueño, estrés, problemas ambientales relacionados a la ECV y condiciones específicas en la mujer. Se incluyó un apartado acerca de comenzar las medidas de promoción y prevención de ECV en edades tempranas, infancia y adolescencia, mencionando además aspectos epigenéticos relacionados a la ECV. Se tienen en cuenta además los determinantes sociales en ECV, ya que algunos de estos aspectos, como el bajo nivel socioeconómico, modifican el riesgo cardiovascular y debieran ser tenidos en cuenta.

Position of the international forum of internal medicine on habits, lifestyle changes and a healthy environment for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD), mainly ischemic heart disease and stroke, is the main cause of death worldwide and each year more people die from CVD than from any other cause. These data call for a paradigm shift, where health promotion and cardiovascular prevention will acquire a central role in health policies. From this perspective, dedicating time during the consultation to promoting the acquisition of heart-healthy habits would be indicated in all individuals, regardless of cardiovascular risk classification, the role of the internist being fundamental. This position document from the International Forum of Internal Medicine (FIMI) presents the main indications regarding changes in lifestyle and acquisition of healthy habits to prevent CVD. The different sections will address topics including: nutrition, physical activity, sedentary lifestyle, obesity, smoking, alcohol consumption, sleep, stress, environmental problems related to CVD and specific conditions in women. A section is included about starting CVD promotion and prevention measures at an early age, childhood and adolescence, also mentioning epigenetic aspects related to CVD. Social determinants in CVD are also taken into account, since some of these aspects, such as low socioeconomic level, modify cardiovascular risk and should be taken into account.

Las enfermedades cardiovasculares (ECV), principalmente la cardiopatía isquémica y el accidente cerebrovascular (ACV), constituyen la principal causa de muerte a nivel mundial y cada año mueren más personas por ECV que por cualquier otra causa. Estos datos requieren la necesidad de un cambio de paradigma, en donde la promoción de la salud y la prevención cardiovascular adquieran un papel central en las políticas sanitarias. Desde esta perspectiva, dedicar tiempo durante la consulta en promocionar la adquisición de hábitos cardiosaludables estaría indicado en todos los individuos, independientemente de la clasificación de riesgo cardiovascular, siendo fundamental el rol del médico internista en su función de médico de cabecera. En este documento de posicionamiento del Foro Internacional de Medicina Interna (FIMI) se presentan algunas pautas para recomendar e indicar modificaciones en el estilo de vida y adquisición de hábitos saludables para prevenir la ECV, que tienen el objetivo de ser una herramienta practica para el médico internista. Las diferentes secciones abordaran temas que incluyen: nutrición, actividad física, sedentarismo, obesidad, hábito tabáquico, consumo de alcohol, sueño, estrés, problemas ambientales relacionados a la ECV y condiciones específicas en la mujer. Se incluyó un apartado acerca de comenzar las medidas de promoción y prevención de ECV en edades tempranas, infancia y adolescencia, mencionando además aspectos epigenéticos relacionados a la ECV. Se tienen en cuenta además los determinantes sociales en ECV, ya que algunos de estos aspectos, como el bajo nivel socioeconómico, modifican el riesgo cardiovascular y debieran ser tenidos en cuenta.

Type-1 diabetes and pulmonary function tests. A meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the association between type-1 diabetes (T1D) and pulmonary function tests. METHODS: After conducting an exhaustive literature search, we performed a meta-analysis. We employed the inverse variance method with a random effects model to calculate the effect estimate as the mean difference (MD) and 95% confidence interval (CI). We calculated the heterogeneity with the I2 statistic and performed a meta-regression analysis by age, sex, body mass index (BMI), smoking and geographical region. We also conducted a sensitivity analysis according to the studies' publication date, size of the T1D group and the study quality, excluding the study with the greatest weight in the effect. RESULTS: The meta-analysis included 39 studies, one longitudinal, 35 case-control and three cross-sectional ones, with 1274 patients with T1D and 1353 control participants. The pooled MD (95%CI) for the predicted percentage of FEV1, FVC, FEF25-75%, PEF and DLCO were -6.40 (95%CI -8.55, -4.25; p < 0.001), -6.39 (95%CI -8.46, -4.33; p < 0.001), -6.14 (95%CI -10.73, -1.56; p = 0.009), -9.32 (95%CI -14.15, -4.50; p = 0.0002) and -0.64 (95%CI -1.12, -0.16; p = 0.008), respectively. There was no difference in the ratio of FEV1/FVC (-0.33 95%CI -1.70, 1.03; p = 0.28). There was considerable heterogeneity. The meta-regression analysis showed that between studies heterogeneity was not explained by patient age, sex, BMI, smoking or geographical region. The findings were consistent in the sensitivity analysis. CONCLUSIONS: T1D is associated with impaired pulmonary function, independently of age, sex, smoking, BMI, and geographical region. Longitudinal studies are needed to investigate outcomes for patients with T1D and impaired pulmonary function.

Prognostic Significance of the PROFUND Index on One Year Mortality in Acute Heart Failure: Results from the RICA Registry.

Background: Heart failure (HF) is a syndrome with high prevalence, mainly affecting elderly patients, where the presence of associated comorbidities is of great importance. Methods: An observational study from a prospective registry was conducted. Patients identified from the National Registry of Heart Failure (RICA), which belongs to the Working Group on Heart Failure and Atrial Fibrillation of the Spanish Society of Internal Medicine (SEMI), were included. The latter is a prospective, multicenter registry that has been active since 2008. It includes individual consecutive patients over 50 years of age with a diagnosis of HF at hospital discharge (acute decompensated or new-onset HF). Results: In total, 5424 patients were identified from the registry. Forty-seven percent were men and mean left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was 51.4%; 1132 had a score of 0 to 2 according to the PROFUND index, 3087 had a score of 3 to 6, and 952 patients had a score of 7 to 10 points. In the sample, 252 patients had a score above 11 points. At the end of the year of follow-up, 61% of the patients died. This mortality increased proportionally as the PROFUND index increased, specifically 75% for patients with PROFUND greater than 11. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve shows that survival at one year progressively decreases as the PROFUND index value increases. Thus, subjects with scores greater than seven (intermediate-high and high-risk) presented the worst survival with a log rank of 0.96 and a p < 0.05. In the regression analysis, we found a higher risk of death from any cause at one year in the group with the highest risk according to the PROFUND index (score greater than 11 points (HR 1.838 (1.410−2.396)). Conclusions: The PROFUND index is a good index for predicting mortality in patients admitted for acute HF, especially in those subjects at intermediate to high risk with scores above seven. Future studies should seek to determine whether the PROFUND index score is simply a prognostic marker or whether it can also be used to make therapeutic decisions for those subjects with very high short-term mortality.

WHO Ordinal Scale and Inflammation Risk Categories in COVID-19. Comparative Study of the Severity Scales.

BACKGROUND: The WHO ordinal severity scale has been used to predict mortality and guide trials in COVID-19. However, it has its limitations. OBJECTIVE: The present study aims to compare three classificatory and predictive models: the WHO ordinal severity scale, the model based on inflammation grades, and the hybrid model. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study with patient data collected and followed up from March 1, 2020, to May 1, 2021, from the nationwide SEMI-COVID-19 Registry. The primary study outcome was in-hospital mortality. As this was a hospital-based study, the patients included corresponded to categories 3 to 7 of the WHO ordinal scale. Categories 6 and 7 were grouped in the same category. KEY RESULTS: A total of 17,225 patients were included in the study. Patients classified as high risk in each of the WHO categories according to the degree of inflammation were as follows: 63.8% vs. 79.9% vs. 90.2% vs. 95.1% (p<0.001). In-hospital mortality for WHO ordinal scale categories 3 to 6/7 was as follows: 0.8% vs. 24.3% vs. 45.3% vs. 34% (p<0.001). In-hospital mortality for the combined categories of ordinal scale 3a to 5b was as follows: 0.4% vs. 1.1% vs. 11.2% vs. 27.5% vs. 35.5% vs. 41.1% (p<0.001). The predictive regression model for in-hospital mortality with our proposed combined ordinal scale reached an AUC=0.871, superior to the two models separately. CONCLUSIONS: The present study proposes a new severity grading scale for COVID-19 hospitalized patients. In our opinion, it is the most informative, representative, and predictive scale in COVID-19 patients to date.

Identifying multimorbidity profiles associated with COVID-19 severity in chronic patients using network analysis in the PRECOVID Study.

A major risk factor of COVID-19 severity is the patient's health status at the time of the infection. Numerous studies focused on specific chronic diseases and identified conditions, mainly cardiovascular ones, associated with poor prognosis. However, chronic diseases tend to cluster into patterns, each with its particular repercussions on the clinical outcome of infected patients. Network analysis in our population revealed that not all cardiovascular patterns have the same risk of COVID-19 hospitalization or mortality and that this risk depends on the pattern of multimorbidity, besides age and sex. We evidenced that negative outcomes were strongly related to patterns in which diabetes and obesity stood out in older women and men, respectively. In younger adults, anxiety was another disease that increased the risk of severity, most notably when combined with menstrual disorders in women or atopic dermatitis in men. These results have relevant implications for organizational, preventive, and clinical actions to help meet the needs of COVID-19 patients.

Impact of the iCODEX tool in routine clinical practice in Spain.

INTRODUCTION: The prognosis of COPD patients can be calculated using multidimensional indexes that improve the predictive capacity of the individual variables. The CODEX index can be calculated using iCODEX, a digital support tool available on the web and in an app. The aim of this study was to evaluate how the usefulness and applicability of iCODEX and its recommendations in routine clinical practice are perceived by specialists in internal medicine, pneumology, and primary care. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2019 to February 2020 with the participation of specialists in internal medicine, primary care, and pneumology. All respondents completed a survey consisting of 104 questions on their perception of the iCODEX tool. RESULTS: Overall, 335 physicians responded. Of these, 95.2% had no difficulty accessing the tool and 83.1% were quite or very satisfied with it. Regarding the applicability and implementation of iCODEX recommendations in routine clinical practice, respondents reported that the recommendations were generally applicable: most questions obtained a median score of ≥ 4 out of 5. The recommendations with the greatest expected clinical benefit are listed. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that the iCODEX tool is easy for participating specialists to use and identifies the recommendations that have the greatest clinical impact in areas such as lung obstruction, severe exacerbations, exercise, smoking, and patient follow-up.

In-hospital mortality among immunosuppressed patients with COVID-19: Analysis from a national cohort in Spain.

BACKGROUND: Whether immunosuppressed (IS) patients have a worse prognosis of COVID-19 compared to non-IS patients is not known. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics and outcome of IS patients hospitalized with COVID-19 compared to non-IS patients. METHODS: We designed a retrospective cohort study. We included all patients hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 from the SEMI-COVID-19 Registry, a large multicentre national cohort in Spain, from March 27th until June 19th, 2020. We used multivariable logistic regression to assess the adjusted odds ratios (aOR) of in-hospital death among IS compared to non-IS patients. RESULTS: Among 13 206 included patients, 2 111 (16.0%) were IS. A total of 166 (1.3%) patients had solid organ (SO) transplant, 1081 (8.2%) had SO neoplasia, 332 (2.5%) had hematologic neoplasia, and 570 (4.3%), 183 (1.4%) and 394 (3.0%) were receiving systemic steroids, biological treatments, and immunosuppressors, respectively. Compared to non-IS patients, the aOR (95% CI) for in-hospital death was 1.60 (1.43-1.79) for all IS patients, 1.39 (1.18-1.63) for patients with SO cancer, 2.31 (1.76-3.03) for patients with haematological cancer and 3.12 (2.23-4.36) for patients with SO transplant. The aOR (95% CI) for death for patients who were receiving systemic steroids, biological treatments and immunosuppressors compared to non-IS patients were 2.16 (1.80-2.61), 1.97 (1.33-2.91) and 2.06 (1.64-2.60), respectively. IS patients had a higher odds than non-IS patients of in-hospital acute respiratory distress syndrome, heart failure, myocarditis, thromboembolic disease and multiorgan failure. CONCLUSIONS: IS patients hospitalized with COVID-19 have a higher odds of in-hospital complications and death compared to non-IS patients.

Estimation of Admission D-dimer Cut-off Value to Predict Venous Thrombotic Events in Hospitalized COVID-19 Patients: Analysis of the SEMI-COVID-19 Registry.

BACKGROUND: Venous thrombotic events (VTE) are frequent in COVID-19, and elevated plasma D-dimer (pDd) and dyspnea are common in both entities. OBJECTIVE: To determine the admission pDd cut-off value associated with in-hospital VTE in patients with COVID-19. METHODS: Multicenter, retrospective study analyzing the at-admission pDd cut-off value to predict VTE and anticoagulation intensity along hospitalization due to COVID-19. RESULTS: Among 9386 patients, 2.2% had VTE: 1.6% pulmonary embolism (PE), 0.4% deep vein thrombosis (DVT), and 0.2% both. Those with VTE had a higher prevalence of tachypnea (42.9% vs. 31.1%; p = 0.0005), basal O2 saturation <93% (45.4% vs. 33.1%; p = 0.0003), higher at admission pDd (median [IQR]: 1.4 [0.6-5.5] vs. 0.6 [0.4-1.2] µg/ml; p < 0.0001) and platelet count (median [IQR]: 208 [158-289] vs. 189 [148-245] platelets × 109/L; p = 0.0013). A pDd cut-off of 1.1 µg/ml showed specificity 72%, sensitivity 49%, positive predictive value (PPV) 4%, and negative predictive value (NPV) 99% for in-hospital VTE. A cut-off value of 4.7 µg/ml showed specificity of 95%, sensitivity of 27%, PPV of 9%, and NPV of 98%. Overall mortality was proportional to pDd value, with the lowest incidence for each pDd category depending on anticoagulation intensity: 26.3% for those with pDd >1.0 µg/ml treated with prophylactic dose (p < 0.0001), 28.8% for pDd for patients with pDd >2.0 µg/ml treated with intermediate dose (p = 0.0001), and 31.3% for those with pDd >3.0 µg/ml and full anticoagulation (p = 0.0183). CONCLUSIONS: In hospitalized patients with COVID-19, a pDd value greater than 3.0 µg/ml can be considered to screen VTE and to consider full-dose anticoagulation.

Multimorbidity clusters in patients with chronic obstructive airway diseases in the EpiChron Cohort.

Chronic obstructive airway diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, rhinitis, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are amongst the most common treatable and preventable chronic conditions with high morbidity burden and mortality risk. We aimed to explore the existence of multimorbidity clusters in patients with such diseases and to estimate their prevalence and impact on mortality. We conducted an observational retrospective study in the EpiChron Cohort (Aragon, Spain), selecting all patients with a diagnosis of allergic rhinitis, asthma, COPD, and/or OSA. The study population was stratified by age (i.e., 15-44, 45-64, and ≥ 65 years) and gender. We performed cluster analysis, including all chronic conditions recorded in primary care electronic health records and hospital discharge reports. More than 75% of the patients had multimorbidity (co-existence of two or more chronic conditions). We identified associations of dermatologic diseases with musculoskeletal disorders and anxiety, cardiometabolic diseases with mental health problems, and substance use disorders with neurologic diseases and neoplasms, amongst others. The number and complexity of the multimorbidity clusters increased with age in both genders. The cluster with the highest likelihood of mortality was identified in men aged 45 to 64 years and included associations between substance use disorder, neurologic conditions, and cancer. Large-scale epidemiological studies like ours could be useful when planning healthcare interventions targeting patients with chronic obstructive airway diseases and multimorbidity.