Demographics and Outcomes of Young Adults Admitted With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
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Rationale Older patients with a variety of comorbidities have historically been more severely affected by coronavirus disease2019 (COVID-19). However, young adults (YA; aged 17-29) and middle-aged adults (MA; aged 30-45) can also be hospitalizedin critical condition. Information and characteristics of such patients is lacking. The purpose of this study was to describedemographics and laboratory characteristics of young adults (YA) and middle-aged adults (MA) admitted to the ICU.METHODSRetrospective study of patients infected with COVID-19 admitted to our hospital from March 2020 to February 2022.Patients were divided by age into YA (17-29 years), and (MA 30-45 years). MA patients were randomly selected to be paired 1-1with YA. Primary outcomes included mortality, length of hospital stay (LOS), and need for invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV).Secondary assessments were severity scores (APACHE, SOFA, Ichikado), and inflammatory markers (ferritin, CPR, total CPK,albumin, ESR, D-dimer, IL-6, and IL-10). Descriptive statistics, Chi-square, and Mann-Whitney tests were utilized to ascertainstatistical significance. RESULTSOf the 994 patients, 51 patients (5.1%25) were younger than 30 years of age, and 227 (22.8%25)were between the ages of 30 and 45. Of the MA group, 51 patients were randomly selected to be paired 1-1 with the YA group.The YA group had a median age of 25 [21-28] and the MA 39 [36-43]. In the YA group, 28 patients (54.9%25) were female,compared to 24 (47.1%25) in the MA group. 1 (2%25) patient died in the YA group, while 6 (11.8%25) died in the MA group (p=0.112).The YA group had a lower hospital LOS with a median of 4 [3-7] days, while LOS of the MA group was 7 [3-12] days (p=0.005).There was no significant difference in APACHE, SOFA, or Ichikado CT scores. No patients in the YA group needed IMV, while 6(11.8%25) patients in the MA group did. The YA group had a lower CPK (86.6 [47-180.5] u/L vs 177 [89-422] u/L, p=0.003), loweralbumin (3.4 (±0.53) g/dL vs 2.9 (±0.67) g/dL, p=0.001), a lower ESR (56.3 (SD=32.98) mm/hr vs 50 (SD=32.52) mm/hr,p=0.039), and a lower D-dimer (0.37 [0.22-0.6] mg/L vs 0.57 [0.35-2.28]mg/L, p=0.008). Other inflammatory markers andparameters analyzed are depicted in the chart. CONCLUSIONYA have shorter hospital LOS, decreased need for IMV, and lowervalues of inflammatory markers, when compared to MA. Mortality was higher in the MA group. No statistically significant increasein severity scores was found.
