By Pooja Toshniwal PahariaSep 5 2023Reviewed by Benedette Cuffari, M.Sc. Various health discrepancies in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection, hospital admission, and death, particularly among American Indian and Alaskan Native populations, have been reported in the United States.
Study: Disproportionate impact of COVID-19 severity and mortality on hospitalized American Indian/Alaska Native patients. Image Credit: Roberto Galan / Shutterstock.com Vital signs and clinical laboratory values were determined within the first 24 hours of admission. Charlson Comorbidity Index scores were calculated to assess comorbidities as a composite measure.
Hospitalized individuals with quantitative-type reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction -confirmed COVID-19 from UNMH were recruited for the current study. Individuals 18 years or younger and those who received extracorporeal membrane oxygenation therapy at admission were excluded from the analysis. The study participants were hospitalized between April 23, 2020, and December 14, 2021.
AI/AN COVID-19 patients were more likely to be younger, require invasive mechanical ventilation, and exhibit laboratory reports indicative of greater COVID-19 severity and more extended hospitalization than other ethnic groups. Throughout hospitalization, a higher percentage of AI/AN individuals also experienced shock and encephalopathy.
For all comorbidities, the percentage was the lowest among AI/AN individuals and highest among NHWs. The AI/AN cohort experienced two-fold higher shock, encephalopathy, and invasive-type mechanical ventilation needs than Hispanics and NHWs.