Abstract 16173: Clinical Characteristics and Short-term Outcomes of Hospitalized Patients With Sars-cov-2 Infection and Reduced Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction

Introduction: Early studies of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients suggested that heart failure (HF) may lead to poorer prognosis. We evaluated demographics and short-term clinical outcomes of patients with evidence of left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD) in comparison to those with preserved LV systolic function (PSF). Methods: In this retrospective study of patients hospitalized for COVID-19 between March and June 2, 2020 at Rush Health Systems in Metro Chicago, demographics, comorbidities and clinical outcomes of patients who demonstrated LVSD (ejection fraction [EF] <50%) on transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) were compared to that of controls with PSF. Results: Out of 1,312 hospitalized patients, 225 underwent TTE, and 44 patients showed LVSD. Demographics were similar between two groups, with exception of a higher prevalence of African American (AA) race (48 % vs. 29%; p=0.03) in the LVSD group. While 82% of patients in the LVSD cohort had history of chronic HF, only 26% of patients in the PSF had pre-existing HF (p<0.001). Underlying comorbidities were similar between groups: obesity (39% vs. 36%; p=0.86), diabetes (57% vs. 57%; p=1.0), hypertension (70% vs. 66%; p=0.72) and end-stage renal disease (20% vs. 19%; p=0.83). Coronary artery disease trended toward a higher frequency (50% vs. 34%; p=0.058) in the LVSD group. Troponin elevation (18% vs. 12%; p=0.43), vasopressor use (57% vs. 56%; p=1.0), endotracheal intubation (59% vs. 57%; p=0.87), myocardial infarction (30% vs. 23%; p=0.43), ICU admission (75% vs. 75%; p=1.0), hospital length of stay (median 11 days vs. 15 days; p=0.4), and death (25% vs. 23%; p=0.84) were similar between groups. Patients with LVSD had higher incidence of sustained ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation than those with PSF (18% vs. 6%; p=0.016). Conclusions: In our COVID-19 admissions, LVSD was more common in AA patients. Patients with LVSD had a higher risk of ventricular arrhythmias. However, there were no differences between need for ICU admission or intubation, vasopressor requirements, length of stay or death between patients with LVSD and those without. Longitudinal follow-up studies are needed to identify differences in long-term sequelae of COVID-19 infection with evidence for LVSD.