TABLE 1.
Baseline patients’ characteristics and outcomes in the total original sample and in the pseudo-population weighted for the propensity score of N-Acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC)
| Original data | Weighted data | |||||
| NAC commencement | SMD | NAC commencement | SMD | |||
| No | Yes | No | Yes | |||
| Subjects, n | 321 | 585 | 329 | 572 | ||
| Males | 192 (60) | 409 (70) | 0.213 | 209 (64) | 381 (67) | 0.060 |
| Age, median (IQR) | 68 (57–79) | 63 (55–72) | 0.232 | 64 (54–75) | 64 (55–73) | 0.003 |
| Oxygen/ventilatory support | 0.736 | 0.098 | ||||
| None | 101 (31) | 41 (7) | 49 (15) | 78 (14) | ||
| Oxygen therapy alone | 168 (52) | 379 (65) | 193 (59) | 354 (62) | ||
| CPAP | 51 (16) | 147 (25) | 82 (25) | 128 (22) | ||
| ETI and IMV | 1 (0) | 18 (3) | 5 (1) | 12 (2) | ||
| Cardiovascular diseases | 187 (58) | 319 (55) | 0.075 | 178 (54) | 315 (55) | 0.016 |
| Hypertension | 151 (47) | 275 (47) | 0.001 | 151 (46) | 270 (47) | 0.021 |
| Diabetes | 69 (21) | 84 (14) | 0.187 | 53 (16) | 90 (16) | 0.006 |
| Obesity | 39 (23) | 126 (33) | 0.219 | 53 (26) | 117 (33) | 0.156 |
| Cerebrovascular diseases | 25 (8) | 30 (5) | 0.108 | 19 (6) | 36 (6) | 0.019 |
| COPD | 25 (8) | 20 (3) | 0.191 | 15 (5) | 25 (4) | 0.017 |
| Moderate or severe chronic kidney diseases | 31 (10) | 41 (7) | 0.096 | 26 (8) | 43 (7) | 0.022 |
| Moderate or severe liver diseases | 7 (2) | 13 (2) | 0.003 | 6 (2) | 16 (3) | 0.078 |
| Chronic neurological disorders | 60 (19) | 52 (9) | 0.287 | 41 (12) | 74 (13) | 0.014 |
| Cancer | 37 (12) | 47 (8) | 0.118 | 33 (10) | 52 (9) | 0.030 |
| Immune system disorder | 8 (2) | 14 (2) | 0.006 | 7 (2) | 12 (2) | 0.004 |
| Treatment during hospitalisation | ||||||
| Systemic steroid | 76 (24) | 265 (45) | 0.467 | 122 (37) | 217 (38) | 0.016 |
| Remdesivir | 13 (4) | 68 (12) | 0.285 | 34 (10) | 52 (9) | 0.035 |
| Outcomes | ||||||
| ICU admission | 20 (7) | 134 (23) | 46 (15) | 107 (19) | 0.360# | |
| Days to ICU, median (IQR) | 4 (1–6) | 2 (0–5) | 2 (0–4) | 2 (0–5) | 0.972# | |
| Days spent in ICU, median (IQR) | 9 (4–19) | 14 (9–24) | 20 (8–32) | 14 (9–23) | 0.191# | |
| Hospital discharge | 0.523# | |||||
| Death | 42 (13) | 91 (16) | 44 (13) | 91 (16) | ||
| Discharged at home | 229 (71) | 396 (68) | 224 (68) | 392 (68) | ||
| Transferred to other facility | 50 (16) | 98 (17) | 61 (19) | 89 (16) | ||
| Length of hospital stay in subjects discharged at home, days, median (IQR) | 16 (11–25) | 16 (10–25) | 17 (12–30) | 15 (10–24) | 0.013# | |
| Atelectasis during hospital stay | 3 (1) | 14 (2) | 7 (2) | 11 (2) | 0.913# | |
Data are presented as n (%), unless otherwise stated. ICU: intensive care unit; IQR: interquartile range; SMD: standardised mean difference; CPAP: continuous positive airway pressure; ETI: endotracheal intubation; IMV: invasive mechanical ventilation. #: p-values are listed for outcomes data.