New study by the GOCARES group.
We studied characteristics, survival, causes of cardiac arrest, conditions preceding cardiac arrest, predictors of survival and trends in the prevalence of COVID-19 among in-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) cases.
Summary of results: The rate of COVID-19+ patients suffering an IHCA increased to 23% during the first pandemic wave (April), then abated to 3% in July, and then increased to 19% during the second wave (December). Among COVID-19+ cases, 43% had respiratory insufficiency or infection as the underlying cause of the cardiac arrest, compared with 18% among COVID-19- cases. The most common clinical sign preceding cardiac arrest was hypoxia (57%) among COVID-19+ cases. OR for 30-day survival for COVID-19+ cases was 0.50 (95% CI 0.33 to 0.76), compared with COVID-19- cases.
