Author/Editor     Rozman, Aleš; Rituper, Boštjan; Kačar, Mark; Kopač, Peter; Zidarn, Mihaela; Pohar Perme, Maja
Title     Length of hospital stay and survival of hospitalized COVID-19 patients during the second wave of the pandemic
Translated title     Trajanje hospitalizacije in umrljivost hospitaliziranih bolnikov s COVID-19 med drugim valom pandemije
Type     članek
Vol. and No.     Letnik 61, št. 4
Publication year     2022
Volume     str. 201-208
ISSN     0351-0026 - Zdravstveno varstvo : Slovenian journal of public health
Language     eng
Abstract     Background: As of writing, there are no publications pertaining to the prediction of COVID-19-related outcomes and length of stay in patients from Slovene hospitals.Objectives: To evaluate the length of regular ward and ICU stays and assess the survival of COVID-19 patients to develop better prediction models to forecast hospital capacity and staffing demands in possible further pandemic peaks.Methods: In this retrospective, single-site study we analysed the length of stay and survival of all patients, hospitalized due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) at the peak of the second wave, between November 18th 2020 and January 27th 2021 at the University Clinic Golnik, Slovenia. Results: Out of 407 included patients, 59% were male. The median length of stay on regular wards was 7.5 (IQR 5‐13) days, and the median ICU length of stay was 6 (IQR 4‐11) days. Age, male sex, and ICU stay were significantly associated with a higher risk of death. The probability of dying in 21 days at the regular ward was 14.4% (95% CI [10.9‐18%]) and at the ICU it was 43.6% (95% CI [19.3-51.8%]).Conclusion: The survival of COVID-19 is strongly affected by age, sex, and the fact that a patient had to be admitted to ICU, while the length of hospital bed occupancy is very similar across different demographic groups. Knowing the length of stay and admission rate to ICU is important for proper planning of resources during an epidemic.
Keywords     COVID-19
mortality
length of stay
COVID-19
umrljivost
trajanje hospitalizacije