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ABSTRACT: Introduction
Hospitalized COVID-19 patients commonly develop pulmonary complications and respiratory insufficiency. Prediction of respiratory deterioration in hospitalized COVID-19 patients is an unmet goal. Aim
To assess monitoring of lung fluid status of hospitalized COVID-19 patients to predict respiratory deterioration and prognosis. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04406493. Methods
Study population comprised 51 patients hospitalized in Hillel Yaffe Medical Center with COVID-19 infection. Patient lung fluid status was monitored by repeat measurements of the lung impedance (LI), a technique found to be very effective for monitoring and guiding treatment of heart failure patients. Decreasing LI reflects lung fluid accumulation. Clinical and laboratory parameters, chest X-ray and LI level were recorded during hospitalization. Results
Of 51 patients hospitalized for COVID-19 infection (37- men and 14- women, 55.7±12.6 years-old), 46 were discharged alive after successful treatment and of these 27 returned for follow-up evaluation 3-6 months after discharge. In these patients’ admission LI was 72.6±18.4 Ohms (Figure 1) and discharge LI was 83.8±20.7 Ohms, which is 15% higher than the admission value (p< 0.04). LI at the follow up visit was surprisingly low (63.7±15 Ohms), or 31.6% lower than discharge value (p<0.01, figure 1). At follow up, examination of the patients and the NT-proBNP tests were within normal limits. Using our previous experience we calculated the normal (“dry”) LI based on the age, sex, weight, height and anthropology of the chest. The calculated values of the normal LI of patients in time of post-discharge visits were exactly same as measured. Therefore, the LI values of patients in time of hospitalization were higher than their normal values. This finding contrasts with our experience with heart failure patients, where decreasing LI reflects lung fluid accumulation. The possible explanation of this finding is that the lung fluid of COVID-19 patients, containing a high concentration of proteins, has different conductivity properties than the lung fluid of heart failure patients. Conclusions
Decreasing of LI level at post-discharge visits of COVID-19 patients 3-6 months after hospitalization differs significantly from the pattern in heart failure patients.
SUBMITTER: Shochat M
PROVIDER: S-EPMC10090085 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature