Statin Therapy and the Risk of COVID-19: A Cohort Study of the National Health Insurance Service in South Korea

Identification of methodological issues regarding direct impact indicators of COVID-19: a rapid scoping review on morbidity, severity and mortality

BACKGROUND

During the first epidemic wave, COVID-19 surveillance focused on quantifying the magnitude and the escalation of a growing global health crisis. The scientific community first assessed risk through basic indicators, such as the number of cases or rates of new cases and deaths, and later began using other direct impact indicators to conduct more detailed analyses. We aimed at synthesizing the scientific community's contribution to assessing the direct impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on population health through indicators reported in research papers.

METHODS

We conducted a rapid scoping review to identify and describe health indicators included in articles published between January 2020 and June 2021, using one strategy to search PubMed, EMBASE and WHO COVID-19 databases. Sixteen experts from European public health institutions screened papers and retrieved indicator characteristics. We also asked in an online survey how the health indicators were added to and used in policy documents in Europe.

RESULTS

After reviewing 3891 records, we selected a final sample of 67 articles and 233 indicators. We identified 52 (22.3%) morbidity indicators from 33 articles, 105 severity indicators (45.1%, 27 articles) and 68 mortality indicators (29.2%, 51). Respondents from 22 countries completed 31 questionnaires, and the majority reported morbidity indicators (29, 93.5%), followed by mortality indicators (26, 83.9%).

CONCLUSIONS

The indicators collated here might be useful to assess the impact of future pandemics. Therefore, their measurement should be standardized to allow for comparisons between settings, countries and different populations.

Metabolic regulation of type I interferon production

Over the past decade, there has been a surge in discoveries of how metabolic pathways regulate immune cell function in health and disease, establishing the field of immunometabolism. Specifically, pathways such as glycolysis, the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, and those involving lipid metabolism have been implicated in regulating immune cell function. Viral infections cause immunometabolic changes which lead to antiviral immunity, but little is known about how metabolic changes regulate interferon responses. Interferons are critical cytokines in host defense, rapidly induced upon pathogen recognition, but are also involved in autoimmune diseases. This review summarizes how metabolic change impacts interferon production. We describe how glycolysis, lipid metabolism (specifically involving eicosanoids and cholesterol), and the TCA cycle-linked intermediates itaconate and fumarate impact type I interferons. Targeting these metabolic changes presents new therapeutic possibilities to modulate type I interferons during host defense or autoimmune disorders.

Statin use and clinical outcomes in hospitalized COVID-19 patients: A retrospective analysis in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the relationship between statin use and coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) severity.

METHODS

This was a retrospective study of adult patients with confirmed COVID-19 who were hospitalized at Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The study was carried out from July - September 2020. Antecedent statin use was evaluated using medication information available in the electronic medical records.

RESULTS

In this retrospective study, we collected data from 689 patients hospitalized with COVID-19. Among the patients, 56.2% of them were non-Saudi and 67.3% were males. The mean age of the patients was 53.7 years. The most common comorbidities among patients with COVID-19 at admission were hypertension (65.2%) and diabetes mellitus (65%). Among these patients, 155 (22.5%) patients received statins during hospitalization and 79.7% of them received corticosteroids. Receiving statins significantly increased the risk of intensive care unit's admission by 1.64 times, intubation by 1.76 times, developing complications by 2.48 times, and mortality by 3.16 times.

CONCLUSION

Statins are associated with a higher risk of mortality and morbidity among patients hospitalized for COVID-19.

Association of antecedent statin use on 30-day, 60-day and 90-day mortality among Mississippi Medicaid beneficiaries diagnosed with COVID-19

OBJECTIVE

To assess if the antecedent statin use was associated with all-cause death among COVID-19 patients enrolled in Medicaid.

DESIGN

Cohort study.

SETTING

Mississippi Medicaid population.

PARTICIPANTS

This study included 10 792 Mississippi Medicaid-enrolled patients between 18 and 64 years of age with a confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis from March 2020 to June 2021.

INTERVENTION

Antecedent statin use, which was determined by a record of statin prescription in the 90-day period prior to the COVID diagnosis.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

The outcomes of interest included mortality from all cause within 30 days, 60 days and 90 days after index.

RESULTS

A total of 10 792 patients with COVID-19 met the inclusion and exclusion criteria, with 13.1% of them being antecedent statin users. Statin users were matched 1:1 with non-users based on age, sex, race, comorbidities and medication use by propensity score matching. In total, the matched cohort consisted of 1107 beneficiaries in each group. Multivariable logistic regression showed that statin users were less likely to die within 30 days (adjusted OR: 0.51, 95% CI: 0.32 to 0.83), 60 days (OR: 0.56, 95% CI: 0.37 to 0.85) and 90 days (OR: 0.55, 95% CI: 0.37 to 0.82) after diagnosis of COVID-19. Those with low-intensity/moderate-intensity statin use had significantly lower mortality risk in the 60-day and the 90-day follow-up period, while the high intensity of statin use was only found to be significantly associated with a lower odd of mortality within 30 days post index.

CONCLUSION

After COVID infection, Medicaid beneficiaries who had taken statins antecedently could be at lower risk for death. For patients with chronic conditions, continuity of care is crucial when interruptions occur in their medical care. Further research is required to further investigate the potential mechanisms and optimal use of statins in COVID-19 treatment.

Routine statins use is associated with less adverse outcome in patients above 70 years of age admitted to hospital with COVID-19

BACKGROUND

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) can lead to multiorgan insufficiency and death, particularly among the older adults. Statins have been suggested as potentially protective drugs due to their pleotropic effects, but the actual benefit of statin use among the older population in this setting is not clear. This study aimed to evaluate the association between preadmission statin use and the presentation and clinical outcomes of hospitalized COVID-19 patients older than 70 years of age.

METHODS

A historical cohort study of all patients above 70 years of age who were hospitalized with COVID-19 infection in a large academic hospital between March and August 2020 was performed. The association between preadmission statin use and patients' presentation and adverse outcome was studied. Adverse outcome was defined as any of the following: shock, invasive or non-invasive ventilation, organ insufficiency, myocardial infarction, cerebrovascular accident, in-hospital or 30-day post-admission mortality, hospital stay longer than the median length of stay of all COVID-19 patients, referral to nursing home or rehabilitation center.

RESULTS

Seventy-two (44%) of the 163 studied patients (median age 82 years, 45% males) had been preadmission treated with statins. The statin-treated patients (STP) had a higher prevalence of diabetes (40% vs 24%, p = 0.028) and cardiovascular disease (58% vs. 34%, p = 0.002). Seventy two percent of the STP had adverse outcome, compared to 86% of the non-STP (p = 0.033). After adjustment for potential confounders, prior statin use was associated with decreased risk for an adverse outcome (odds ratio = 0.4, 95% confidence interval 0.18-0.92, p = 0.03).

CONCLUSIONS

The preadmission use of statins was associated with a lower risk of adverse outcome in older adults hospitalized with COVID-19. Continuation of statin treatment might be implemented for risk reduction of adverse outcomes in the older population in the era of new SARS-CoV-2 variants and less effective vaccines.

Repurposed drug studies on the primary prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infection during the pandemic: systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

Current evidence on the effectiveness of SARS-CoV-2 prophylaxis is inconclusive. We aimed to systematically evaluate published studies on repurposed drugs for the prevention of laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and/or COVID-19 among healthy adults.

DESIGN

Systematic review.

ELIGIBILITY

Quantitative experimental and observational intervention studies that evaluated the effectiveness of repurposed drugs for the primary prevention of SARS-CoV-2 infection and/or COVID-19 disease.

DATA SOURCE

PubMed and Embase (1 January 2020-28 September 2022).

RISK OF BIAS

Cochrane Risk of Bias 2.0 and Risk of Bias in Non-Randomised Studies of Interventions tools were applied to assess the quality of studies.

DATA ANALYSIS

Meta-analyses for each eligible drug were performed if ≥2 similar study designs were available.

RESULTS

In all, 65 (25 trials, 40 observational) and 29 publications were eligible for review and meta-analyses, respectively. Most studies pertained to hydroxychloroquine (32), ACE inhibitor (ACEi) or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) (11), statin (8), and ivermectin (8). In trials, hydroxychloroquine prophylaxis reduced laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection (risk ratio: 0.82 (95% CI 0.74 to 0.90), I2=48%), a result largely driven by one clinical trial (weight: 60.5%). Such beneficial effects were not observed in observational studies, nor for prognostic clinical outcomes. Ivermectin did not significantly reduce the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection (RR: 0.35 (95% CI 0.10 to 1.26), I2=96%) and findings for clinical outcomes were inconsistent. Neither ACEi or ARB were beneficial in reducing SARS-CoV-2 infection. Most of the evidence from clinical trials was of moderate quality and of lower quality in observational studies.

CONCLUSIONS

Results from our analysis are insufficient to support an evidence-based repurposed drug policy for SARS-CoV-2 prophylaxis because of inconsistency. In the view of scarce supportive evidence on repurposing drugs for COVID-19, alternative strategies such as immunisation of vulnerable people are warranted to prevent the future waves of infection.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42021292797.

Prior Statin vs In-Hospital Statin Usage in Severe COVID-19: Review and Meta-Analysis

Studies have shown that statins can decrease COVID-19 mortality in hospitalized patients. This paper evaluates these studies and reviews the possible mechanism of how statins modulate COVID-19 severity. Meta-analysis of 31 retrospective studies demonstrated a reduction in mortality rate among statin users (OR 0.69, 95% CI 0.56-0.86, p =0.0008) (HR 0.83, 95% CI 0.72-0.95, p =0.0078). Meta-analysis of 8 randomized control studies demonstrated a nonsignificant reduction in mortality (OR 0.90, 95% CI 0.69-1.18, p =0.461), including four studies with medications other than statins, and four studies with only statins (OR 0.88, 95% CI 95% CI 0.64-1.21, p =0.423). Prolonged statin usage decreases the extracellular localization of ACE2, along with statins' immunomodulating effects and reduction of oxidative stress, decreases COVID-19 mortality. Hospitalized patients with COVID-19 should continue statin treatment if previously prescribed, and patients should not be started on statins, as they do not seem to provide any mortality benefit.

Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Statin Use and Mortality, Intensive Care Unit Admission and Requirement for Mechanical Ventilation in COVID-19 Patients

There is mounting evidence that statin use is beneficial for COVID-19 outcomes. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the association between statin use and mortality, intensive care unit (ICU) admission and mechanical ventilation in COVID-19 patients, on studies which provided covariate adjusted effect estimates, or performed propensity score matching. We searched PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Scopus for studies and extracted odds or hazard ratios for specified outcome measures. Data synthesis was performed using a random-effects inverse variance method. Risk of bias, heterogeneity and publication bias were analyzed using standard methods. Our results show that statin use was associated with significant reductions in mortality (OR = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.67-0.77; HR = 0.74, 95% CI: 0.69, 0.79), ICU admission (OR = 0.94, 95% CI: 0.89-0.99; HR = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.60-0.96) and mechanical ventilation (OR = 0.84, 95% CI: 0.78-0.92; HR = 0.67, 95% CI: 0.47-0.97). Nevertheless, current retrospective studies are based on the antecedent use of statins prior to infection and/or continued use of statin after hospital admission. The results may not apply to the de novo commencement of statin treatment after developing COVID-19 infection. Prospective studies are lacking and necessary.

Statin and mortality in COVID-19: a systematic review and meta-analysis of pooled adjusted effect estimates from propensity-matched cohorts

PURPOSE

Statin potentially improved outcome in patients with COVID-19. Patients who receive statin generally have a higher proportion of comorbidities than those who did not, which may introduce bias. In this meta-analysis, we aimed to investigate the association between statin use and mortality in patients with COVID-19 by pooling the adjusted effect estimates from propensity-score matching (PSM) matched studies or randomised controlled trials to reduce bias.

METHODS

A systematic literature search using the PubMed, Scopus and Embase databases were performed up until 1 March 2021. Studies that were designed the study to assess statin and mortality using PSM with the addition of Inverse Probability Treatment Weighting or multivariable regression analysis on top of PSM-matched cohorts were included. The effect estimate was reported in term of relative risk (RR).

RESULTS

14 446 patients were included in the eight PSM-matched studies. Statin was associated with decreased mortality in patients with COVID-19 (RR 0.72 (0.55, 0.95), p=0.018; I2: 84.3%, p<0.001). Subgroup analysis in patients receiving statin in-hospital showed that it was associated with lower mortality (RR 0.71 (0.54, 0.94), p=0.030; I2: 64.1%, p<0.025). The association of statin and mortality was not significantly affected by age (coefficient: -0.04, p=0.382), male gender (RR 0.96 (0.95, 1.02), p=0.456), diabetes (RR 1.02 (0.99, 1.04), p=0.271) and hypertension (RR 1.01 (0.97, 1.04), p=0.732) in this pooled analysis.

CONCLUSION

In this meta-analysis of PSM-matched cohorts with adjusted analysis, statin was shown to decrease the risk of mortality in patients with COVID-19.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER

CRD42021240137.

Association of Statins for Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Diseases With Hospitalization for COVID-19: A Nationwide Matched Population-Based Cohort Study

Background There is little evidence on the relationship between statin use and the risk of hospitalization attributable to COVID-19. Methods and Results The French National Healthcare Data System database was used to conduct a matched-cohort study. For each adult aged ≥40 years receiving statins for the primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases, one nonuser was randomly selected and matched for year of birth, sex, residence area, and comorbidities. The association between statin use and hospitalization for COVID-19 was examined using conditional Cox proportional hazards models, adjusted for baseline characteristics, comorbidities, and long-term medications. Its association with in-hospital death from COVID-19 was also explored. All participants were followed up from February 15, 2020, to June 15, 2020. The matching procedure generated 2 058 249 adults in the statin group and 2 058 249 in the control group, composed of 46.6% of men with a mean age of 68.7 years. Statin users had a 16% lower risk of hospitalization for COVID-19 than nonusers (adjusted hazard ratio [HR], 0.84; 95% CI, 0.81-0.88). All types of statins were significantly associated with a lower risk of hospitalization, with the adjusted HR ranging from 0.75 for fluvastatin to 0.89 for atorvastatin. Low- and moderate-intensity statins also showed a lower risk compared with nonusers (HR, 0.78 [95% CI, 0.71-0.86] and HR, 0.84 [95% CI, 0.80-0.89], respectively), whereas high-intensity statins did not (HR, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.86-1.18). We found similar results with in-hospital death from COVID-19. Conclusions Our findings support that the use of statins for primary prevention is associated with lower risks of hospitalization for COVID-19 and of in-hospital death from COVID-19.

The Association Between the Use of Statins and Clinical Outcomes in Patients with COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Purpose

Previously, we have reported potential clinical benefits with the use of statins in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in a meta-analysis, where there was a significantly reduced hazard for a fatal or severe course of illness with the use of statins, but the meta-analysis was limited by the small number of studies included, with small heterogeneity among studies, due to the unavailability of more studies at the point of literature search. We aimed to perform an updated systematic review and meta-analysis to summarize the existing evidence on the effect of statins on the clinical outcomes of patients with COVID-19.

Methods

Electronic databases, including PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus, and preprint servers were searched (last updated June 3, 2021) to identify studies investigating the association between the use of statins in patients with COVID-19 and the development of severe disease and/or mortality. Random-effects model meta-analyses were performed to estimate the pooled odds ratio (OR) or hazard ratio (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The outcomes of interest were (1) all-cause mortality and (2) a composite endpoint of severe illness of COVID-19.

Results

Upon systematic literature search, we identified 35 studies, of which 32 studies reported the outcome of all-cause mortality and 15 studies reported the composite endpoint of severe COVID-19 illness between statin users versus non-statin users with COVID-19. Our meta-analysis revealed that the use of statins was associated with a significantly lower risks of all-cause mortality (HR = 0.70, 95% CI 0.58–0.84, n = 21,127, and OR = 0.63, 95% CI 0.51–0.79, n = 115,097) and the composite endpoint of severe illness (OR = 0.80, 95% CI 0.73–0.88, n = 10,081) in patients with COVID-19, compared to non-use of statins, at the current sample size.

Conclusion

Statin use is associated with a better prognosis in patients with COVID-19. Our findings provide a rationale to investigate the use of statins among patients with COVID-19 in large scale clinical trials.

Statin Use in COVID-19 Hospitalized Patients and Outcomes: A Retrospective Study

Background

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) might affect everyone, but people with comorbidities such as hypertension and cardiovascular disease (CVD) may often have more severe complications and worse outcomes. Although vaccinations are being performed worldwide, it will take a long time until the entire population of the world is vaccinated. On the other hand, we are witnessing the emergence of new variants of this virus. Therefore, effective therapeutic approaches still need to be considered. Statins are well-known lipid-lowering drugs, but they have also anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. This study aimed to investigate the effects of statins on the survival of COVID-19 hospitalized patients.

Methods

This retrospective study was performed on 583 patients admitted to a highly referenced hospital in Tabas, Iran, between February 2020 and December 2020. One hundred sixty-two patients were treated with statins and 421 patients were not. Demographic information, clinical signs, and the results of laboratory, and comorbidities were extracted from patients' medical records and mortality and survival rates were assessed in these two groups.

Results

The results of the Cox crude regression model showed that statins reduced mortality in COVID-19 patients (HR = 0.56, 95% CI: 0.32, 0.97; p = 0.040), although this reduction was not significant in the adjusted model (HRs=0.51, 95%CI: 0.22, 1.17; p = 0.114). Using a composite outcome comprising intubation, ICU admission, and mortality, both crude (HR = 0.43; 95% CI: 0.26, 0.73; p = 0.002) and adjusted (HR = 0.57; 95% CI: 0.33, 0.99; p = 0.048) models suggested a significant protective effect of statin therapy.

Conclusion

Due to anti-inflammatory properties of statins, these drugs can be effective as an adjunct therapy in the treatment of COVID-19 patients.

Improved COVID-19 Outcomes following Statin Therapy: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Although vaccine rollout for COVID-19 has been effective in some countries, there is still an urgent need to reduce disease transmission and severity. We recently carried out a meta-analysis and found that pre- and in-hospital use of statins may improve COVID-19 mortality outcomes. Here, we provide an updated meta-analysis in an attempt to validate these results and increase the statistical power of these potentially important findings.

METHODS

The meta-analysis investigated the effect of observational and randomized clinical studies on intensive care unit (ICU) admission, tracheal intubation, and death outcomes in COVID-19 cases involving statin treatment, by searching the scientific literature up to April 23, 2021. Statistical analysis and random effect modeling were performed to assess the combined effects of the updated and previous findings on the outcome measures. Findings. The updated literature search led to the identification of 23 additional studies on statin use in COVID-19 patients. Analysis of the combined studies (n = 47; 3,238,508 subjects) showed no significant effect of statin treatment on ICU admission and all-cause mortality but a significant reduction in tracheal intubation (OR = 0.73, 95% CI: 0.54-0.99, p = 0.04, n = 10 studies). The further analysis showed that death outcomes were significantly reduced in the patients who received statins during hospitalization (OR = 0.54, 95% CI: 0.50-0.58, p < 0.001, n = 7 studies), with no such effect of statin therapy before hospital admission (OR = 1.06, 95% CI = 0.82-1.37, p = 0.670, n = 29 studies).

CONCLUSION

Taken together, this updated meta-analysis extends and confirms the findings of our previous study, suggesting that in-hospital statin use leads to significant reduction of all-cause mortality in COVID-19 cases. Considering these results, statin therapy during hospitalization, while indicated, should be recommended.

Efficacy of Statin Therapy in Patients with Hospital Admission for COVID-19

PURPOSE

COVID-19 is characterized by dysfunctional immune responses and metabolic derangements, which in some, lead to multi-organ failure and death. Statins are foundational lipid-lowering therapeutics for cardiovascular disease and also possess beneficial immune-modulating properties. Because of these immune-modulating properties, some have suggested their use in COVID-19. We sought to investigate the association between statin use and mortality in patients hospitalized with COVID-19.

METHODS

Five thousand three hundred seventy-five COVID-19 patients admitted to Mount Sinai Health System hospitals in New York between February 27, 2020, and December 3, 2020, were included in this analysis. Statin use was classified as either non-user, low-to-moderate-intensity user, or high-intensity user. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate in-hospital mortality rate. Considered covariates were age, sex, race, and comorbidities.

RESULTS

Compared to non-statin users, both low-to-moderate-intensity (adjusted hazard ratio; aHR 0.62, 95% confidential intervals; CI 0.51-0.76) and high-intensity statin users (aHR 0.53, 95% CI 0.43-0.65) had a reduced risk of death. Subgroup analysis of 723 coronary artery disease patients showed decreased mortality among high-intensity statin users compared to non-users (aHR 0.51, 95% CI 0.36-0.71).

CONCLUSIONS

Statin use in patients hospitalized with COVID-19 was associated with a reduced in-hospital mortality. The protective effect of statin was greater in those with coronary artery disease. These data support continued use of statin therapy in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Clinical trials are needed to prospectively determine if statin use is effective in lowering the mortality in COVID-19 and other viral infections.

Statins reduce mortality in patients with COVID-19: an updated meta-analysis of 147 824 patients

OBJECTIVES

There is conflicting evidence about the efficacy of statin use in regard to clinical outcomes in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed to examine the effect of statin use on mortality in COVID-19 patients.

METHODS

The electronic databases were searched, from inception to March 3, 2021. Unadjusted and adjusted effect estimates with their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were pooled using random-effects models.

RESULTS

Twenty-five cohort studies involving 147 824 patients were included. The mean age of the patients ranged from 44.9 to 70.9 years; 57% of patients were male and 43% were female. The use of statins was not associated with mortality when applying the unadjusted risk ratio (uRR 1.16, 95% CI 0.86-1.57; 19 studies). In contrast, meta-analyses of the adjusted odds ratio (aOR 0.67, 95% CI 0.52-0.86; 11 studies) and adjusted hazard ratio (aHR 0.73, 95% CI 0.58-0.91; 10 studies) showed that statins were independently associated with a significant reduction in mortality. Subgroup analyses showed that only chronic use of statins significantly reduced mortality according to the adjusted models.

CONCLUSIONS

The use of statins was found to be associated with a lower risk of mortality in COVID-19 patients based on adjusted effects of cohort studies. However, randomized controlled trials are still needed to confirm these findings.

Statin use and mortality in COVID-19 patients: Updated systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Statin therapy is administered to patients with high cardiovascular risk. These patients are also at risk for severe course of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Statins exhibit not only cardioprotective but also immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects. This study performed a systematic review of published evidence regarding statin treatment and COVID-19 related mortality.

METHODS

A systematic PubMed/Embase search was performed from February 10, 2020 until March 05, 2021 for studies in COVID-19 patients that reported adjusted hazard or odds ratio for death in statin users versus non-users.

RESULTS

22 studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria and were included in the systematic review. Meta-analysis of 10 studies (n = 41,807, weighted age 56 ± 8 years, men 51%, hypertension 34%, diabetes 21%, statin users 14%) that reported adjusted hazard ratios for mortality in statin users versus non-users showed pooled estimate at 0.65 (95% confidence intervals [CI] 0.53, 0.81). Meta-analysis of 6 studies that reported continuation of statin therapy during hospitalization (58-100% of patients) revealed a pooled hazard ratio of 0.54 (95% CI 0.47, 0.62). Meta-analysis of 12 studies (n = 72,881, weighted age 65 ± 2 years, men 54%, hypertension 66%, diabetes 43%, statin users 30%) that reported adjusted odds ratios for mortality showed pooled estimate at 0.65 (95% CI 0.55, 0.78). Multivariable meta-regression analysis did not reveal any significant association of hazard or odds ratios with anthropometric characteristics or comorbidities.

CONCLUSIONS

This meta-analysis of retrospective observational studies showed that statin therapy was associated with an about 35% decrease in the adjusted risk of mortality in hospitalized COVID-19 patients.

Coronaviruses, cholesterol and statins: Involvement and application for Covid-19

The infectious power of coronaviruses is dependent on cholesterol present in the membranes of their target cells. Indeed, the virus enters the infected cell either by fusion or by endocytosis, in both cases involving cholesterol-enriched membrane microdomains. These membrane domains can be disorganized in-vitro by various cholesterol-altering agents, including statins that inhibit cell cholesterol biosynthesis. As a consequence, numerous cell physiology processes, such as signaling cascades, can be compromised. Also, some examples of anti-bacterial and anti-viral effects of statins have been observed for infectious agents known to be cholesterol dependent. In-vivo, besides their widely-reported hypocholesterolemic effect, statins display various pleiotropic effects mediated, at least partially, by perturbation of membrane microdomains as a consequence of the alteration of endogenous cholesterol synthesis. It should thus be worth considering a high, but clinically well-tolerated, dose of statin to treat Covid-19 patients, in the early phase of infection, to inhibit virus entry into the target cells, in order to control the viral charge and hence avoid severe clinical complications. Based on its efficacy and favorable biodisposition, an option would be considering Atorvastatin, but randomized controlled clinical trials are required to test this hypothesis. This new therapeutic proposal takes benefit from being a drug repurposing, applied to a widely-used drug presenting a high efficiency-to-toxicity ratio. Additionally, this therapeutic strategy avoids any risk of drug resistance by viral mutation since it is host-targeted. Noteworthy, the same pharmacological approach could also be proposed to address different animal coronavirus endemic infections that are responsible for heavy economic losses.