Table 2.
Outcomes of patients hospitalized for heart failure prior to the pandemic and during the pandemic and in patients with COVID‐19 and without COVID‐19
| Before COVID‐19 pandemic (n = 42 004) | During COVID‐19 pandemic (n = 37 027) | p‐value | Without COVID‐19 during hospitalization (n = 36 478) | With COVID‐19 during hospitalization (n = 549) | p‐value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| In‐hospital death (%) | 2.5 | 3.0 | <0.0001 | 3.0 | 8.2 | <0.0001 |
| Cause of death (%) | 0.582 | 0.0007 | ||||
| Cardiovascular | 70.7 | 68.5 | 69.8 | 37.5 | ||
| Non‐cardiovascular | 19.9 | 20.2 | 19.0 | 50.0 | ||
| Unknown | 9.4 | 11.3 | 11.2 | 12.5 | ||
| Unadjusted OR (95% CI) a | Reference | 1.22 (1.10–1.35) | <0.0001 | Reference | 3.14 (2.23–4.42) | <0.0001 |
| Adjusted OR (95% CI) a | Reference | 1.23 (1.11–1.37) | <0.0001 | Reference | 2.92 (2.14–3.99) | <0.0001 |
| Length of stay (days), mean (SD) | 5.4 (4.9) | 5.7 (5.7) | 0.0004 | 5.7 (5.7) | 7.7 (7.9) | <0.0001 |
| Unadjusted ratio of means (95% CI) b | Reference | 1.04 (1.02–1.06) | 0.0004 | Reference | 1.35 (1.22–1.49) | <0.0001 |
| Adjusted ratio of means (95% CI) b | Reference | 1.03 (1.01–1.05) | 0.0012 | Reference | 1.35 (1.22–1.50) | <0.0001 |
| Discharge disposition (%) | <0.0001 | <0.0001 | ||||
| Home | 75.3 | 76.8 | 76.9 | 68.5 | ||
| Home hospice | 2.8 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 2.9 | ||
| Healthcare facility hospice | 1.7 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 2.0 | ||
| Acute care facility | 2.8 | 2.7 | 2.8 | 1.5 | ||
| Other healthcare facility | 12.5 | 9.3 | 9.2 | 14.0 | ||
| Against medical advice | 2.4 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 2.7 |
CI, confidence interval; OR, odds ratio; SD, standard deviation.
p‐values based on Pearson chi‐square for all categorical row variables and chi‐square rank based group means score for all continuous/ordinal row variable.
Adjusted OR and ratio of means controlled for patient demographics (age, sex, race, insurance), medical history (anaemia, ischaemic heart disease, cerebrovascular accident/transient ischaemic attack, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidaemia, hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease/asthma, peripheral vascular disease, renal insufficiency, cigarette smoking in the past year), vital signs at admission (systolic blood pressure, heart rate, left ventricular ejection fraction), and hospital characteristics (region, hospital type, number of beds, rural vs. urban location).
ORs were assessed using a logistic regression model.
Ratio of means were calculated using a negative binomial model with a log link.