PLoS One. 2020 Dec 22;15(12):e0244270. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0244270. eCollection 2020.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate differences by race/ethnicity in clinical characteristics and outcomes among hospitalized patients with Covid-19 at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).
METHODS: The MGH Covid-19 Registry includes confirmed SARS-CoV-2-infected patients hospitalized at MGH and is based on manual chart reviews and data extraction from electronic health records (EHRs). We evaluated differences between White/Non-Hispanic and Hispanic patients in demographics, complications and 14-day outcomes among the N = 866 patients hospitalized with Covid-19 from March 11, 2020-May 4, 2020.
RESULTS: Overall, 43% of patients hospitalized with Covid-19 were women, median age was 60.4 [IQR = (48.2, 75)], 11.3% were Black/non-Hispanic and 35.2% were Hispanic. Hispanic patients, representing 35.2% of patients, were younger than White/non-Hispanic patients [median age 51y; IQR = (40.6, 61.6) versus 72y; (58.0, 81.7) (p<0.001)]. Hispanic patients were symptomatic longer before presenting to care (median 5 vs 3d, p = 0.039) but were more likely to be sent home with self-quarantine than be admitted to hospital (29% vs 16%, p<0.001). Hispanic patients had fewer comorbidities yet comparable rates of ICU or death (34% vs 36%). Nonetheless, a greater proportion of Hispanic patients recovered by 14 days after presentation (62% vs 45%, p<0.001; OR = 1.99, p = 0.011 in multivariable adjusted model) and fewer died (2% versus 18%, p<0.001).
CONCLUSIONS: Hospitalized Hispanic patients were younger and had fewer comorbidities compared to White/non-Hispanic patients; despite comparable rates of ICU care or death, a greater proportion recovered. These results have implications for public health policy and the design and conduct of clinical trials.
PMID:33351826 | PMC:PMC7755195 | DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0244270