Inpatient Administration of Alpha-1-Adrenergic Receptor Blocking Agents Reduces Mortality in Male COVID-19 Patients

Apha-1-adrenergic receptor antagonists (α(1)-blockers) can suppress pro-inflammatory cytokines, thereby potentially improving outcomes among patients with COVID-19. Accordingly, we evaluated the association between α(1)-blocker exposure (before or during hospitalization) and COVID-19 in-hospital mortality. We identified 2,627 men aged 45 or older who were admitted to Mount Sinai hospitals with COVID-19 between February 24 and May 31, 2020, in New York. Men exposed to α(1)-blockers (N = 436) were older (median age 73 vs. 64 years, P < 0.001) and more likely to have comorbidities than unexposed men (N = 2,191). Overall, 777 (29.6%) patients died in hospital, and 1,850 (70.4%) were discharged. Notably, we found that α(1)-blocker exposure was independently associated with improved in-hospital mortality in a multivariable logistic analysis (OR 0.699; 95% CI, 0.498-0.982; P = 0.039) after adjusting for patient demographics, comorbidities, and baseline vitals and labs. The protective effect of α(1)-blockers was stronger among patients with documented inpatient exposure to α(1)-blockers (OR 0.624; 95% CI 0.431-0.903; P = 0.012). Finally, age-stratified analyses suggested variable benefit from inpatient α(1)-blocker across age groups: Age 45-65 OR 0.483, 95% CI 0.216-1.081 (P = 0.077); Age 55-75 OR 0.535, 95% CI 0.323-0.885 (P = 0.015); Age 65-89 OR 0.727, 95% CI 0.484-1.092 (P = 0.124). Taken together, clinical trials to assess the therapeutic value of α(1)-blockers for COVID-19 complications are warranted.