Patient Outcomes and Rate of Intensive Care Unit Admissions Following Bariatric Surgery: A Retrospective Cohort Study of 775 Patients

Background The last two decades have seen a significant rise in obesity and its adverse consequences across the globe. Bariatric surgery has emerged as a widely employed therapeutic approach for weight reduction and alleviating the risk of obesity-related chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer. As bariatric procedures are gaining popularity, the complications associated with these procedures can not be ignored. This retrospective study aimed to investigate the incidence of intensive care unit (ICU) admissions following bariatric surgery and ICU-related mortality. Methodology This retrospective study conducted at King Hamad University Hospital, Bahrain evaluated the patient outcomes and the rate of ICU admissions following bariatric surgery between 2018 and 2022. Demographic data of the patients were extracted from electronic health records. The primary endpoint was ICU admission incidence and mortality, while secondary outcomes included risk factors, duration of ICU stay, and complications leading to ICU admission. Results Of the 775 patients included, 66.3% were female. The mean age of the patients was 35.92 ± 21.12 years. Over 91% of the patients had a body mass index above 30 kg/m2. The most common primary procedure was laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy (75%), followed by gastric bypass (22.6%). In revision bariatric surgery, the majority (91.3%) had a conversion from sleeve gastrectomy to gastric bypass. Overall, 0.77% of patients were admitted to the ICU, with the majority being unplanned ICU admissions (0.52%). The average ICU stay was 21 days (1 to 54 days). The most common reason for ICU admission was sepsis, septic shock, and gastric leakage. Conclusions The results of this study show a relatively lower number of ICU admissions after bariatric surgery compared to previous studies.

A Meta-Analysis To Ascertain the Effectiveness of COVID-19 Vaccines on Clinical Outcomes in Patients With COVID-19 Infection in North America

The challenges in controlling the pandemic have been exacerbated by the disease's morbidity and the emergence of additional COVID-19 variants. The use of emergency vaccines to circumvent these challenges has sparked mixed opinions on their effectiveness. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to assess the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines on clinical outcomes such as incidence, hospitalization, and ventilation rates in both vaccinated and unvaccinated patients. PubMed, Google Scholar, and Cochrane Central Register of Clinical Trials were searched on April 21, 2022, to extract published articles comparing vaccinated COVID-19 patients versus unvaccinated COVID-19 patients and their clinical outcomes. The clinical outcomes studied were incidence rate, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, mechanical ventilation, and hospitalization rates. The analysis was performed with Review Manager (RevMan) software. Random-effect models were used to calculate pooled odds ratio and corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI). In our meta-analysis, we have identified a total of 250 published findings, encompassing 15 studies that involved a cumulative count of 24,164,227 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19. Being unvaccinated had a significant association with severe clinical outcomes in patients infected with COVID-19. Unvaccinated individuals were 2.36 times more likely to be infected, with a 95% CI ranging from 1.13 to 4.94 (p = 0.02). Unvaccinated subjects with COVID-19 infection were 6.93 times more likely to be admitted to the ICU than their vaccinated counterparts, with a 95% CI ranging from 3.57 to 13.46 (p < 0.0001). The hospitalization rate was 3.37 higher among the unvaccinated compared to those vaccinated, with a 95% CI ranging from 1.92 to 5.93 (p < 0.0001). In addition, patients with COVID-19 infection who are unvaccinated were 6.44 times more likely to be mechanically ventilated than those vaccinated, with a 95% CI ranging from 3.13 to 13.23 (p < 0.0001). Overall, our study revealed that vaccination against COVID-19 disease is beneficial and effective in mitigating the spread of the infection and associated clinical outcomes. However, more awareness and proper education must be made to increase vaccine acceptance. We, therefore, recommend and urge all stakeholders involved in COVID-19 prevention, management, and control to strengthen awareness and educate the people on the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination.

Racial and Ethnic Differences in Hospital Admissions of Emergency Department COVID-19 Patients

BACKGROUND

Several studies have found that among patients testing positive for COVID-19 within a health care system, non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic patients are more likely than non-Hispanic White patients to be hospitalized. However, previous studies have looked at odds of being admitted using all positive tests in the system and not only those seeking care in the emergency department (ED).

OBJECTIVE

This study examined racial/ethnic differences in COVID-19 hospitalizations and intensive care unit (ICU) admissions among patients seeking care for COVID-19 in the ED.

RESEARCH DESIGN

Electronic health records (n=7549) were collected from COVID-19 confirmed patients that visited an ED of an urban health care system in the Chicago area between March 2020 and February 2021.

RESULTS

After adjusting for possible confounders, White patients had 2.2 times the odds of being admitted to the hospital and 1.5 times the odds of being admitted to the ICU than Black patients. There were no observed differences between White and Hispanic patients.

CONCLUSIONS

White patients were more likely than Black patients to be hospitalized after presenting to the ED with COVID-19 and more likely to be admitted directly to the ICU. This finding may be due to racial/ethnic differences in severity of disease upon ED presentation, racial and ethnic differences in access to COVID-19 primary care and/or implicit bias impacting clinical decision-making.