Severe COVID-19 Outcomes in Five Latin American Countries in the Postvaccination Era

Abstract

We conducted a multicountry retrospective study using data from COVID-19 national surveillance databases to analyze clinical profiles, hospitalization rates, intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, utilization of ventilatory support, and mortality rates in five Latin American countries in the context of COVID-19 vaccination implementation. We analyzed the sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidities, clinical outcomes, and vaccination status of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases from January 2021 to December 2022. We calculated the yearly and quarterly hospitalization rates per 1000 confirmed COVID-19 cases and ICU admissions, use of mechanical ventilators, and mortality rates per 1000 hospitalized cases, with their corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) of 38,852,831 confirmed COVID-19 cases. Rates of hospitalization, ICU admission, ventilatory support, and death were higher among males than among females (38.2 vs. 32.4, 148.4 vs. 117.7, 282.9 vs. 236.2, and 346.9 vs. 320.1 per 1000, respectively); higher in 2021 than in 2022 (50.7 vs. 19.9, 207.8 vs. 58.2, 441.5 vs. 114.9, and 352.5 vs. 285.2 per 1000, respectively); and in the >50 age group (range: 5.7–18.6, 20.1–71.5, 12.2–67.9, and 353.1–577.4, per 1000) than the <50 age group (range: 2.2–9.3, 5.4–33.2, 41.4–135.8, and 22–243.5 per 1000). Hypertension and diabetes mellitus were the most common comorbidities in Mexico and Colombia. Prevention and treatment strategies for these case profiles could bring benefits from a public health perspective.