| Literature DB >> 35229615 |
Daniel K Fox1, R J Waken1, Daniel Y Johnson1, Gmerice Hammond1, Jonathan Yu1, Erika Fanous1, Thomas M Maddox1, Karen E Joynt Maddox1,2.
Abstract
Background Excess mortality from cardiovascular disease during the COVID-19 pandemic has been reported. The mechanism is unclear but may include delay or deferral of care, or differential treatment during hospitalization because of strains on hospital capacity. Methods and Results We used emergency department and inpatient data from a 12-hospital health system to examine changes in volume, patient age and comorbidities, treatment (right- and left-heart catheterization), and outcomes for patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and heart failure (HF) during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with pre-COVID-19 (2018 and 2019), controlling for seasonal variation. We analyzed 27 427 emergency department visits or hospitalizations. Patient volume decreased during COVID-19 for both HF and AMI, but age, race, sex, and medical comorbidities were similar before and during COVID-19 for both groups. Acuity increased for AMI as measured by the proportion of patients with ST-segment elevation. There were no differences in right-heart catheterization for patients with HF or in left heart catheterization for patients with AMI. In-hospital mortality increased for AMI during COVID-19 (odds ratio [OR], 1.46; 95% CI, 1.21-1.76), particularly among the ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction subgroup (OR, 2.57; 95% CI, 2.24-2.96), but was unchanged for HF (OR, 1.02; 95% CI, 0.89-1.16). Conclusions Cardiovascular volume decreased during COVID-19. Despite similar patient age and comorbidities and in-hospital treatments during COVID-19, mortality increased for patients with AMI but not patients with HF. Given that AMI is a time-sensitive condition, delay or deferral of care rather than changes in hospital care delivery may have led to worse cardiovascular outcomes during COVID-19.Entities:
Keywords: COVID‐19; acute myocardial infarction; heart failure; spillover
Mesh:
Year: 2022 PMID: 35229615 PMCID: PMC9075301 DOI: 10.1161/JAHA.121.022625
Source DB: PubMed Journal: J Am Heart Assoc ISSN: 2047-9980 Impact factor: 6.106
Patient Characteristics
| Heart failure cohort | Pre‐COVID‐19 (January 1, 2018–March 20, 2020) | COVID‐19 (March 21, 2020–September 21, 2020) |
| ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | Spring | Summer | Fall | Spring | Summer | ||
| (N=5948) | (N=4163) | (N=3844) | (N=4016) | (N=1565) | (N=1685) | ||
| Daily volume | 23.6 (6.30) | 22.3 (6.02) | 20.7 (5.71) | 22.3 (5.84) | 17.0 (5.75) | 18.3 (4.94) | <0.001 |
| Sex | |||||||
| Female | 2907 (48.9) | 2007 (48.2) | 1981 (51.5) | 1958 (48.8) | 759 (48.5) | 793 (47.1) | 0.05 |
| Male | 3041 (51.1) | 2156 (51.8) | 1863 (48.5) | 2058 (51.2) | 806 (51.5) | 892 (52.9) | |
| Race | |||||||
| Black | 2397 (40.3) | 1731 (41.6) | 1613 (42.0) | 1699 (42.3) | 690 (44.1) | 746 (44.3) | 0.02 |
| White | 3551 (59.7) | 2432 (58.4) | 2231 (58.0) | 2317 (57.7) | 875 (55.9) | 939 (55.7) | |
| Insurance | |||||||
| Commercial | 653 (11.0) | 457 (11.0) | 412 (10.7) | 433 (10.8) | 158 (10.1) | 184 (10.9) | <0.001 |
| Medicaid | 737 (12.4) | 524 (12.6) | 478 (12.4) | 497 (12.4) | 249 (15.9) | 263 (15.6) | |
| Medicare | 4394 (73.9) | 3084 (74.1) | 2858 (74.3) | 2978 (74.2) | 1107 (70.7) | 1178 (69.9) | |
| Self pay | 164 (2.8) | 98 (2.4) | 96 (2.5) | 108 (2.7) | 51 (3.3) | 60 (3.6) | |
| Comorbidities | |||||||
| Renal failure | 3423 (57.5) | 2348 (56.4) | 2189 (56.9) | 2377 (59.2) | 870 (55.6) | 982 (58.3) | 0.77 |
| Liver disease | 326 (5.5) | 258 (6.2) | 215 (5.6) | 259 (6.4) | 127 (8.1) | 111 (6.6) | 0.01 |
| Diabetes | 2419 (40.7) | 1655 (39.8) | 1491 (38.8) | 1617 (40.3) | 610 (39.0) | 671 (39.8) | 0.92 |
| Valvular heart disease | 1656 (27.8) | 1088 (26.1) | 1009 (26.2) | 1072 (26.7) | 399 (25.5) | 425 (25.2) | 0.37 |
| Hypertension | 5424 (91.2) | 3786 (90.9) | 3550 (92.4) | 3716 (92.5) | 1438 (91.9) | 1552 (92.1) | 0.53 |
| Chronic pulm. disease | 2526 (42.5) | 1844 (44.3) | 1712 (44.5) | 1730 (43.1) | 682 (43.6) | 720 (42.7) | 0.23 |
| Fluid/electrolyte disorder | 1994 (33.5) | 1347 (32.4) | 1273 (33.1) | 1342 (33.4) | 628 (40.1) | 654 (38.8) | <0.001 |
| Obesity | 1573 (26.4) | 1151 (27.6) | 986 (25.7) | 1046 (26.0) | 416 (26.6) | 492 (29.2) | 0.18 |
Variables were reported as numbers and percentages. P value compares spring/summer pre‐COVID‐19 to spring/summer during COVID‐19.
AMI indicates acute myocardial infarction.
Changes in Presentation, In‐Hospital Treatments, and Outcomes
| Pre‐COVID‐19 (January 1, 2018–March 20, 2020) | COVID‐19 (March 21, 2020–September 21, 2020) |
| ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | Spring | Summer | Fall | Spring | Summer | |||
| Heart failure cohort | ||||||||
| Presentation severity | ||||||||
| Cardiogenic shock |
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|
|
|
| |
| ED admission | 4998 (84.0) | 3490 (83.8) | 3265 (84.9) | 3380 (84.2) | 1341 (85.7) | 1462 (86.8) | 0.041 | |
| Direct admission | 933 (15.7) | 659 (15.8) | 566 (14.7) | 627 (15.6) | 221 (14.1) | 218 (12.9) | 0.053 | |
| In‐hospital procedures/outcomes | ||||||||
| Right‐heart catheterization | 474 (8.0) | 349 (8.4) | 319 (8.3) | 339 (8.4) | 139 (8.9) | 180 (10.7) | 0.431 | |
| LOS, mean (SD) | 4.85 (6.16) | 4.78 (6.26) | 4.83 (6.31) | 4.96 (7.28) | 4.90 (5.96) | 4.76 (5.33) | 0.973 | |
| Death | 145 (2.4) | 93 (2.2) | 69 (1.8) | 94 (2.3) | 42 (2.7) | 27 (1.6) | 0.944 | |
| Discharge status | ||||||||
| Against medical advice | 110 (1.8) | 87 (2.1) | 92 (2.4) | 68 (1.7) | 38 (2.4) | 55 (3.3) | <0.001 | |
| Home | 3716 (62.5) | 2594 (62.3) | 2404 (62.5) | 2511 (62.5) | 1003 (64.1) | 1070 (63.5) | ||
| Home with services | 933 (15.7) | 694 (16.7) | 603 (15.7) | 643 (16.0) | 293 (18.7) | 314 (18.6) | ||
| Other | 63 (1.1) | 45 (1.1) | 32 (0.8) | 35 (0.9) | 15 (1.0) | 17 (1.0) | ||
| Postacute care | 981 (16.5) | 650 (15.6) | 644 (16.8) | 665 (16.6) | 174 (11.1) | 202 (12.0) | ||
| AMI cohort | ||||||||
| Presentation severity | ||||||||
| Cardiogenic shock |
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|
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|
|
| |
| ED admission | 1275 (77.5) | 949 (76.9) | 840 (74.5) | 949 (80.0) | 362 (80.4) | 418 (82.8) | 0.001 | |
| Direct admission | 368 (22.4) | 280 (22.7) | 286 (25.4) | 237 (20.0) | 88 (19.6) | 87 (17.2) | 0.002 | |
| NSTEMI | 1147 (69.7) | 873 (70.7) | 801 (71.0) | 861 (72.6) | 281 (62.4) | 341 (67.5) | 0.005 | |
| STEMI | 498 (30.3) | 361 (29.3) | 327 (29.0) | 325 (27.4) | 169 (37.6) | 164 (32.5) | ||
| Procedures and LOS | ||||||||
| Left heart catheterization | 1130 (68.7) | 879 (71.2) | 801 (71.0) | 843 (71.1) | 315 (70.0) | 362 (71.7) | 0.991 | |
| LOS, mean (SD) | 5.22 (5.92) | 5.17 (6.71) | 5.09 (6.21) | 5.05 (6.94) | 4.98 (6.73) | 4.42 (5.19) | 0.184 | |
| Death | 145 (2.4) | 93 (2.2) | 69 (1.8) | 94 (2.3) | 42 (2.7) | 27 (1.6) | <0.001 | |
| Discharge status | ||||||||
| Against medical advice | 110 (1.8) | 87 (2.1) | 92 (2.4) | 68 (1.7) | 38 (2.4) | 55 (3.3) | <0.001 | |
| Home | 3716 (62.5) | 2594 (62.3) | 2404 (62.5) | 2511 (62.5) | 1003 (64.1) | 1070 (63.5) | ||
| Home with services | 933 (15.7) | 694 (16.7) | 603 (15.7) | 643 (16.0) | 293 (18.7) | 314 (18.6) | ||
| Other | 63 (1.1) | 45 (1.1) | 32 (0.8) | 35 (0.9) | 15 (1.0) | 17 (1.0) | ||
| Post‐acute care | 981 (16.5) | 650 (15.6) | 644 (16.8) | 665 (16.6) | 174 (11.1) | 202 (12.0) | ||
Categorical variables were reported as numbers and percentages, and continuous variables were reported as means and standard deviations. P value compares spring/summer pre‐COVID‐19 to spring/summer during COVID‐19.
AMI indicates acute myocardial infarction; ED, emergency department; LOS, length of stay; NSTEMI, non–ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction; and STEMI, ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction.
Figure 1Raw weekly mortality rates during the study period.
AMI indicates acute myocardial infarction; ED, emergency department; and HF, heart failure.
Odds of Procedure Use and Mortality in HF and AMI Cohorts
| aOR, COVID‐19 vs non‐COVID‐19 | Lower CI | Upper CI |
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMI | ||||
| Mortality (all) | 1.36 | 1.15 | 1.60 | <0.001 |
| Mortality (STEMI) | 2.57 | 2.24 | 2.96 | <0.001 |
| Left‐heart catheterization (all) | 1.02 | 0.88 | 1.19 | 0.77 |
| Heart failure | ||||
| Mortality | 1.01 | 0.89 | 1.15 | 0.91 |
| Right‐heart catheterization | 1.07 | 0.92 | 1.25 | 0.36 |
Models control for age, race, insurance status, Elixhauser comorbidities, and season. The non‐COVID‐19 time periods serve as the reference group, such that odds ratios >1 indicate a higher odds of the event during COVID‐19.
AMI indicates acute myocardial infarction; aOR, adjusted odds ratio; and STEMI, ST‐segment–elevation myocardial infarction.