Purpose The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak has become a global public health concern; however, relatively few detailed reports of related cardiac injury are available. The aims of this study were to compare the clinical and echocardiographic characteristics of inpatients in the intensive-care unit (ICU) and non-ICU patients. Methods We recruited 416 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 and divided them into two groups: ICU (n = 35) and non-ICU (n = 381). Medical histories, laboratory findings, and echocardiography data were compared. Results The levels of myocardial injury markers in ICU vs non-ICU patients were as follows: troponin

Introduction Community‐acquired pneumonia (CAP) severity scores perform well in predicting mortality of CAP patients, but their applicability in influenza pneumonia is powerless. Objectives The aim of our research was to test the efficiency of PO2/FiO2 and CAP severity scores in predicting mortality and intensive care unit (ICU) admission with influenza pneumonia patients. Methods We reviewed all patients with positive influenza virus RNA detection in Beijing Chao‐Yang Hospital during the 2009–2014 influenza seasons. Outpatients, inpatients with no pneumonia and incomplete data were excluded. We used receiver operating characteristic curves (ROCs) to verify the accuracy of severity scores or indices as mortality predictors in the study patients. Results Among 170 hospitalized patients with influenza pneumonia, 30 (17.6%) died. Among those who were classified as low‐risk (predicted mortality 0.1%–2.1%) by pneumonia severity index (PSI) or confusion, urea, respiratory rate, blood pressure, age ≥65 year (CURB‐65), the actual mortality ranged from 5.9 to 22.1%. Multivariate logistic regression indicated that hypoxia (PO2/FiO2 ≤ 250) and lymphopenia (peripheral blood lymphocyte count <0.8 × 109/L) were independent risk factors for mortality, with OR value of 22.483 (95% confidence interval 4.927–102.598) and 5.853 (95% confidence interval 1.887–18.152), respectively. PO2/FiO2 combined lymphocyte count performed well for mortality prediction with area under the curve (AUC) of 0.945, which was significantly better than current CAP severity scores of PSI, CURB‐65 and confusion, respiratory rate, blood pressure, age ≥65 years for mortality prediction (P < 0.001). The scores or indices for ICU admission prediction to hospitalized patients with influenza pneumonia confirmed a similar pattern and PO2/FiO2 combined lymphocyte count was also the best predictor for predicting ICU admission. Conclusion In conclusion, we found that PO2/FiO2 combined lymphocyte count is simple and reliable predictor of hospitalized patients with influenza pneumonia in predicting mortality and ICU admission. When PO2/FiO2 ≤ 250 or peripheral blood lymphocyte count <0.8 × 109/L, the clinician should pay great attention to the possibility of severe influenza pneumonia.

BackgroundBetter knowledge of distribution of respiratory viruses (RVs) in adolescents and adults with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is needed.MethodsTo investigate the RVs etiology among adolescents and adults with CAP, according to age and pneumonia severity index (PSI), a multi-center, prospective study was conducted from November 2010 to April 2012. Fifteen RVs were tested by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Bacteria were detected by urinary antigen, conventional culture and PCR.ResultsMean (SD) age and median (IQR) PSI score of 954 patients enrolled was 45.2 (19.5) years (range 14–94) and 42 (36). RVs were found in 262 patients (27.5%): influenza virus A (IFV A, 9.9%) comprised of pandemic H1N1 (6.7%) and seasonal H3N2 (3.5%), human rhinovirus (4.3%), adenovirus (4.2%), human metapneumovirus (1.8%), parainfluenza virus 1, 3 and 2 (1.7%, 1.5% and 1.2%). Influenza virus B, enterovirus, respiratory syncytial virus, human coronavirus and parainfluenza virus 4 were rarely detected (<1%). Frequency of IFV A was highest among patients aged between 45–64 years (p < 0.001), while adenovirus among patients aged 14–17 years (p < 0.001), no differences was found in other RVs. The proportion of pandemic H1N1 increased with severity of pneumonia evaluated by PSI (P < 0.05).ConclusionsThe proportion of RVs in CAP is higher than previously reported. IFV A pneumonia are usually found in patients older than 45 years, while, adenovirus pneumonia are common in adolescents and young adults. Pandemic H1N1 virus is still recognized by PSI as a high-severity pathogen. The findings contribute baseline data on viral CAP study in China.