Clinical profile and risk factors for mortality among COVID-19 inpatients at a tertiary care centre in Bengaluru, India

COVID-19 is an emerging viral disease affecting more than 200 countries worldwide and it present with varied clinical profile throughout the world. Without effective drugs to cure COVID-19, early identification and control of risk factors are important measures to combat COVID-19.  This study was conducted to determine the clinical profile and risk factors associated with mortality among COVID-19 patients in a tertiary care hospital in South India. This record-based longitudinal study was conducted by reviewing the case records of COVID-19 patients admitted for treatment from June 2020 to September 2020 in a tertiary care centre in South India. The clinical details, discharge/death details, were collected and entered in MS Excel. Potential risk factors for COVID-19 mortality were analysed using univariate binomial logistic regression, generalized linear models (GLM) with Poisson distribution. Survival curves were made using the Kaplan-Meier method. Log-rank test was used to test the equality of survivor functions between the groups. Out of 854 COVID-19 patients, 56.6% were men and the mean (standard deviation) age was 45.3(17.2) years. The median survival time was significantly lesser in male COVID-19 patients (16 days) as compared to female patients (20 days). Increasing age, male gender, patients presenting with symptoms of fever, cough, breathlessness, smoking, alcohol consumption, comorbidities were significantly associated with mortality among COVID-19 patients. Patients with older age, male gender, breathlessness, fever, cough, smoking and alcohol and comorbidities need careful observation and early intervention.  Public health campaigns aimed at reducing the prevalence of risk factors like diabetes, hypertension, smoking and alcohol use are also needed.