Comorbidities Associated with Complicated Hospital Course and Death in COVID-19 Patients: A Retrospective Study from Iran

Objective: There are limited data regarding the impact of comorbidities on hospitalized patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Iran. Methods: We evaluated the risk of serious adverse outcomes in 1368 Iranian COVID-19 patients, admitted to five academic hospitals in Tehran between February-June 2020. The composite end-points were defined as admission to an intensive care unit, invasive ventilation, or death. The Cox proportional survival model determined the potential comorbidities associated with death. Results: Overall, 576 patients (42.3%) reached the composite end-point (280 death). Adjusted for age, sex, duration of hospitalization, and the presence of the other comorbidities, patients with diabetes (RR=1.25, 95%CI; 1.08-1.44), heart failure (RR=1.45, 95%CI; 1.10-1.91), chronic kidney disease (RR=1.32, 95%CI; 1.04-1.67), malignancy (RR=1.79, 95%CI; 1.41-2.28), and lung diseases (RR=1.53, 95%CI; 1.27-1.84) were more likely to reach the composite end-point than those without the very comorbidity. Moreover, patients aged less than 65 years had a greater risk of death in the presence of two (HR=2.68, 95%CI; 1.46-4.95, p=0.002) or more (HR=3.47, 95%CI; 1.69-7.12, p=0.001) comorbidities, compared to those without any comorbidity. Conclusion: To conclude, having two or more comorbidities in patients less than 65 years is associated with a greater risk of death during hospitalization.