Korean J Intern Med.  2023 Jan;38(1):68-79. 10.3904/kjim.2022.084.

Clinical outcomes of and risk factors for secondary infection in patients with severe COVID-19: a multicenter cohort study in South Korea

• Na YS
• Baek AR
• Baek MS
• Kim WY
• Kim JH
• Lee By
• Seong GM
• Lee SI

• KMID: 2537400
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3904/kjim.2022.084

Abstract

Background/Aims
Secondary infection with influenza virus occurs in critically ill patients and is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality; however, there is limited information about it in patients with severe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Thus, we investigated the clinical outcomes of and risk factors for secondary infections in patients with severe COVID-19.
Methods
This study included patients with severe COVID-19 who were admitted to seven hospitals in South Korea between February 2020 to February 2021. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to assess factors associated with the risk of secondary infections.
Results
Of the 348 included patients, 104 (29.9%) had at least one infection. There was no statistically significant difference in the 28-day mortality (17.3% vs. 12.3%, p = 0.214), but in-hospital mortality was higher (29.8% vs. 15.2%, p = 0.002) in the infected group than in the non-infected group. The risk factors for secondary infection were a high frailty scale (odds ratio [OR], 1.314; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.123 to 1.538; p = 0.001), steroid use (OR, 3.110; 95% CI, 1.164 to 8.309; p = 0.024), and the application of mechanical ventilation (OR, 4.653; 95% CI, 2.533 to 8.547; p < 0.001).
Conclusions
In-hospital mortality was more than doubled in patients with severe COVID-19 and secondary infections. A high frailty scale, the use of steroids and application of mechanical ventilation were risk factors for secondary infection.

Keyword

Bacterial infections; COVID-19; Critical care; SARS-CoV-2; Coinfection