Hypothesis-Agnostic Network-Based Analysis of Real-World Data Suggests Ondansetron is Associated with Lower COVID-19 Any Cause Mortality

Abstract

Background The COVID-19 pandemic generated a massive amount of clinical data, which potentially hold yet undiscovered answers related to COVID-19 morbidity, mortality, long-term effects, and therapeutic solutions. Objectives The objectives of this study were (1) to identify novel predictors of COVID-19 any cause mortality by employing artificial intelligence analytics on real-world data through a hypothesis-agnostic approach and (2) to determine if these effects are maintained after adjusting for potential confounders and to what degree they are moderated by other variables. Methods A Bayesian statistics-based artificial intelligence data analytics tool (bAIcis ® ) within the Interrogative Biology ® platform was used for Bayesian network learning and hypothesis generation to analyze 16,277 PCR+ patients from a database of 279,281 inpatients and outpatients tested for SARS-CoV-2 infection by antigen, antibody, or PCR methods during the first pandemic year in Central Florida. This approach generated Bayesian networks that enabled unbiased identification of significant predictors of any cause mortality for specific COVID-19 patient populations. These findings were further analyzed by logistic regression, regression by least absolute shrinkage and selection operator, and bootstrapping. Results We found that in the COVID-19 PCR+ patient cohort, early use of the antiemetic agent ondansetron was associated with decreased any cause mortality 30 days post-PCR+ testing in mechanically ventilated patients. ConclusionsThe results demonstrate how a real-world COVID-19-focused data analysis using artificial intelligence can generate unexpected yet valid insights that could possibly support clinical decision making and minimize the future loss of lives and resources.