Clinical determinants of oxygen saturation and length of hospitalisation of COVID-19 patients: A cross-sectional study in Indonesia.
Evi Susanti, Maria Rista Okstoria, Siti Wijayanti and 6 others
PMID 36852163WHAT IT FOUND
In hospitalised adults aged 19 to 64 with COVID-19, vomiting, high blood pressure and fast breathing were linked to lower oxygen saturation.
Fast breathing, fever, diabetes, abnormal D-dimer and blood glucose were linked to hospital stay over 14 days.
Key findings
01Vomiting, hypertension and abnormal tachypnoea were associated with lower oxygen saturation.
02Tachypnoea, fever, diabetes mellitus, headache, abnormal D-dimer and abnormal blood glucose were reported as associated with hospitalisation longer than 14 days.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study included only conscious, non-ventilated adults from one hospital, so it may not apply to children, older adults, unconscious patients or patients needing mechanical ventilation. The cross-sectional design cannot show that these factors caused lower oxygen saturation or longer stay. Some table values are inconsistent with the sample size or with each other, which weakens confidence in the exact associations. The oxygen saturation analysis reports p-values and regression coefficients but not actual saturation values, so the size of the difference cannot be judged. The length-of-stay outcome was defined as more than 14 days, so factors associated with shorter stays may differ.
Declared interests
The authors report no funding and no conflict of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these associations as proof that treating vomiting, hypertension or tachypnoea will raise oxygen saturation or shorten hospital stay. The study is cross-sectional and cannot establish cause.