Table 1.
Clinical features of gastrointestinal dysfunction in critically ill patients with vs. without COVID-19
| COVID | Non-COVID | |
|---|---|---|
| GI symptoms | 11–95% (1,16–18) | 60% (19,20) |
| Diarrhea | 15–45% (16,21–23) | 3–78% (24) |
| Bowel paralysis/constipation | 39% (16) | 20–83% (24) |
| Nausea/vomiting | 11–64% (16,21,22) | 15–38% (19,20,25) |
| Large GRV | 10–83% (21,23) | 8–67% (26,27) |
| Abdominal distension | 38–67% (16,21) | 21–45% (20,26) |
| Feeding intolerance | 32–63% (18,21,22) | 2–75% (26–28) |
| Mesenteric ischemia | 2–3% (1,16) | 1–5% in patients with shock or burns (29–31) |
| Gastrointestinal failurea | 8–50% (17,18) | 6–26% (20,26,32,33) |
| Association of GI dysfunction with outcome | Independent association with mortality (18,21) | Independent association with mortality (20,26,32,33) |
Studies considerably varied with regard to study design, population and definition of GI symptoms
aGastrointestinal failure was defined as AGI grade (34) III/IV or presence of ≥ 3 concomitant GI symptoms
References from 16–34 are available in the Supplementary material