Study of Clinical Outcome and Healthcare Modalities of COVID-19 Patients Treated With Remdesivir at a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital

Background Effective treatment for COVID-19 infection is still under evaluation. Remdesivir is an approved drug for COVID-19 treatment and major countries have released guidelines on the use of remdesivir. Still, many factors are under evaluation which can determine the future use of remdesivir. Aim To study the clinical outcome and healthcare modalities of COVID-19 patients treated with remdesivir. Materials and methods A retrospective study was conducted through the clinical records of patients admitted to the tertiary care hospital between August 2020 and December 2020. All the patients who were administered remdesivir intravenously as per standard protocol were included in the study. Data were analyzed for statistical association between health care modalities and patient characteristics. Results Among 166 patients included, the mean age of patient who received remdesivir was 57.51 ± 12.98 years (95% confidence interval (CI), 30-84). The mean duration of stay and duration of oxygen requirement were 12.80 ± 5.99 (95% CI, 5-30) and 9.41 ± 7.47 (95% CI, 0-39) days, respectively. A total of 12 (7.23%) required assisted ventilation and the cure rate was 89.76% (149/166). Out of 166 patients, 105 (63.25%) had comorbidities, among which hypertension and diabetes were the most common. Significantly >60 year age group had a higher duration of oxygen requirement (u=2,639.5, p=0.01), while ≤60 year age group had a higher cure rate (X(2)=4.23, p=0.03) and a higher requirement for assisted ventilation (X(2)=4.77, p=0.02). Differences and associations in the above-mentioned health care modalities were not statistically significant for gender and comorbidity except that non-comorbid had a higher cure rate (X(2)=3.97, p=0.04). The odds ratio of comorbidity and cure rate was 1.07, while the association of the number of comorbidities with the duration of stay (p=0.62) and duration of oxygen requirement (p=0.35) was not statistically significant. Conclusion In remdesivir-treated patients, age affects utilization of health care modalities. Female, non-comorbid, and younger patients have better clinical outcomes.