Table 2.
Outcomes in the intention-to-treat population.
| Characteristic | Total (N = 60) | Interferon Beta-1a (N = 20) | Interferon Beta-1b (N = 20) | Control (N = 20) | P-value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time to clinical improvement—median (95% CI) | 6.0 (5.2–6.7) | 5.0 (4.2–5.7) | 5.0 (3.6–6.4) | 7.0 (6.1–7.9) | 0.046 | |||
| Mortality at day 21—no. (%) | 19 (31.7%) | 4 (20.0%) | 6 (30.0%) | 9 (45.0%) | 0.231 | |||
| Mortality in early presentation (≤ 6 days of symptom onset)—no. (%) | 9 (26.5%) | 2 (16.7%) | 3 (30.0%) | 4 (33.3%) | 0.623 | |||
| Mortality in late presentation (> 6 days of symptom onset)—no. (%) | 10 (38.5%) | 2 (25.0%) | 3 (30.0%) | 5 (62.5%) | 0.238 | |||
| ICU admission—no. (%) | 45 (75.0%) | 16 (80.0%) | 13 (65.0%) | 16 (80.0%) | 0.449 | |||
| Invasive mechanical ventilation—no. (%) | 21 (35.0%) | 7 (35.0%) | 7 (35.0%) | 7 (35.0%) | 1.00 | |||
| Hospital stay—median no. of days (IQR) | 5.0 (3.2–7.0) | 5.0 (3.0–6.0) | 5.0 (3.2–7.7) | 6.0 (5.0–7.0) | 0.312 | |||
| Time from enrollment to discharge—median no. of days (IQR) | 5.0 (3.0–6.0) | 4.0 (3.0–5.0) | 5.0 (2.7–6.2) | 5.5 (5.0–7.0) | 0.183 | |||
| Time from enrollment to death—median no. of days (IQR) | 7.0 (5.0–9.0) | 8.0 (4.0–9.0) | 7.5 (4.2–18.0) | 7.0 (4.5–8.0) | 0.813 | |||
| Mean body temperature (during hospitalization), median (IQR)—°C | 36.9 (36.8–37.1) | 36.9 (36.9–37.1) | 36.9 (36.7–37.1) | 36.8 (36.7–37.0) | 0.227 | |||
| Mean respiratory rate median (IQR) | 16.5 (14.5–18.7) | 15.8 (14.0–18.4) | 16.5 (14.5–22.2) | 16.8 (15.5–18.7) | 0.416 | |||
| Last respiratory rate median (IQR) | 16.0 (14.0–18.0)† | 16.0 (14.0–18.0)† | 16.0 (14.0–24.7) | 16.0 (14.2–18.0)† | 0.610 | |||
| Mean oxygen saturation (SpO2)—median (IQR) | 88.4 (86.1–90.1) | 89.0 (86.0–91.0) | 87.7 (83.1–89.2) | 88.5 (86.2–91.0) | 0.326 | |||
| Worst oxygen saturation (SpO2)—median (IQR) | 85.0 (82.0–89.0) | 86.0 (82.0–89.0) | 83.0 (80.0–88.0) | 85.5 (84.2–89.0) | 0.352 | |||
| Last oxygen saturation (SpO2)—median (IQR) | 90.0 (88.0–94.0)† | 90.5 (89.0–95.7)† | 90.0 (84.0–93.0) | 90.0 (85.0–93.2)† | 0.410 | |||
| White blood cell count (× 10−9/L)—median (IQR) | 7.2 (6.1–10.4) | 7.2 (5.2–9.9) | 7.1 (6.3–9.7) | 9.2 (6.5–12.2) | 0.450 | |||
| < 4 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 2 (4.0%) | 2 (11.1%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0.223 | |||
| 4–10 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 34 (68.0%) | 12 (66.7%) | 12 (80.0%) | 10 (58.8%) | ||||
| > 10 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 14 (28.0%) | 4 (22.2%) | 3 (20.0%) | 7 (41.2%) | ||||
| Lymphocyte count (× 10 − 9/L)—median (IQR) | 1.03 (0.63–1.40) | 1.12 (0.69–1.40) | 1.04 (0.64–1.70) | 0.81 (0.62–1.25) | 0.304 | |||
| ≥ 1.0 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 25 (51.0%) | 12 (66.7%) | 8 (53.3%) | 6 (35.3%) | 0.177 | |||
| < 1.0 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 24 (49.0%) | 6 (33.3%) | 7 (46.7%) | 11 (64.7%) | ||||
| Platelet count (× 10−9/L)—median (IQR) | 197.0 (160.7–268.5) | 191.0 (159.0–272.0) | 219.5 (152.5–262.2) | 193.0 (169.5–292.0) | 0.785 | |||
| ≥ 100 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 51 (98.1%) | 19 (100.0%) | 16 (100.0%) | 16 (94.1%) | 0.350 | |||
| < 100 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 1 (1.9%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) | 1 (5.9%) | ||||
| Neutrophil count (× 10−9/L)—median (IQR) | 5.9 (4.6–5.9) | 5.3 (3.8–8.6) | 5.3 (4.3–6.5) | 8.3 (6.0–11.1) | 0.092 | |||
| ≥ 1.5 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 1 (2.2%) | 1 (5.6%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0 (0.0%) | 0.128 | |||
| 1.5–8 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 29 (64.4%) | 12 (66.7%) | 11 (84.6%) | 6 (42.9%) | ||||
| > 8 × 10−9/L—no. (%) | 15 (33.3%) | 5 (27.8%) | 2 (15.4%) | 15 (57.1%) | ||||
| Serum creatinine (μmol/L)—median (IQR) | 88.4 (79.6–154.7) | 88.4 (75.1–106.1) | 79.5 (79.5–106.1) | 106.1 (79.5–185.6) | 0.549 | |||
| ≤ 133 μmol/L—no. (%) | 44 (73.3%) | 17 (85.0%) | 16 (80.0%) | 11 (55.0%) | 0.071 | |||
| > 133 μmol/L—no. (%) | 16 (26.7%) | 3 (15.0%) | 4 (20.0%) | 9 (45.0%) | ||||
| Last BUN—median (IQR) | 50.0 (34.0–102.2) | 38.0 (31.0–90.5) | 36.0 (30.0–74.7) | 80.0 (39.0–117.0) | 0.107 | |||
The values are based on analysis of available data. Laboratory values for White Blood Cell count and Lymphocyte count were available for 18 patients in Interferon Beta-1a, 15 patients in the Interferon Beta-1b, and 17 patients in the control group. Values for Platelet count were available for 19 patients in Interferon Beta-1a, 16 patients in the Interferon Beta-1b, and 17 patients in the control group. Values for Neutrophil count were available for 13 patients in Interferon Beta-1a, 11 patients in the Interferon Beta-1b, and 6 patients in the control group. IQR denotes the interquartile range. Quantitative measures were compared using the Kruskal–Wallis test. Categorical variables were compared using the Chi-Square test. Comparisons before and after intervention have been made using The Wilcoxon signed-rank test.
†Statistically significant in comparison to the baseline.