Statin use and clinical outcomes in hospitalized COVID-19 patients: A retrospective analysis in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between statin use and coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) severity. METHODS: This was a retrospective study of adult patients with confirmed COVID-19 who were hospitalized at Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The study was carried out from July - September 2020. Antecedent statin use was evaluated using medication information available in the electronic medical records. RESULTS: In this retrospective study, we collected data from 689 patients hospitalized with COVID-19. Among the patients, 56.2% of them were non-Saudi and 67.3% were males. The mean age of the patients was 53.7 years. The most common comorbidities among patients with COVID-19 at admission were hypertension (65.2%) and diabetes mellitus (65%). Among these patients, 155 (22.5%) patients received statins during hospitalization and 79.7% of them received corticosteroids. Receiving statins significantly increased the risk of intensive care unit's admission by 1.64 times, intubation by 1.76 times, developing complications by 2.48 times, and mortality by 3.16 times. CONCLUSION: Statins are associated with a higher risk of mortality and morbidity among patients hospitalized for COVID-19.

The Level of Awareness Among Healthcare Practitioners Regarding the Relationship Between Breast Density and Breast Cancer.

Background Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer in women, accounting for around 23% of all cancer-related deaths across 140 nations. The awareness about breast density (BD) has a significant impact on early diagnosis of breast cancer. Aim and objective This study aims to assess the awareness of healthcare providers about BD in King Abdullah Medical City. Methods This is an analytical cross-sectional questionnaire-based study among the healthcare practitioners of KAMC in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Questions measured knowledge about BD and a pass mark indicated participant awareness. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS, and a chi-square test used for bivariate analysis. Results Out of 124 participants, 41% were well aware. Physicians (37% of the sample) were significantly more aware than allied healthcare practitioners and nurses (awareness: 59.6%, 33.3%, 30.4% respectively, (p = 0.03)). Regarding specialty, radiologists and surgeons had the top level of awareness (62% and 64%, respectively) as compared to oncologists (47.1%) and other specialties (29.7%), (p= 0.016). Those above 40 years of age were more aware than those below 40 years (awareness: 62.1% and 34%, respectively, (p=0.007)). Non-significant factors included: gender, years of experience, screened versus non-screened, and receiving information before about BD (p > 0.05). Conclusion The results of this population-based study indicate the existence of moderate deficits in the general knowledge about BD and its relation to breast cancer. This might lead to a late diagnosis. The results showed no dramatic differences in the awareness among healthcare providers.