Socio-economic deprivation and the risk of death after ICU admission with COVID-19: The poor relation

Abstract

The mortality of coronavirus-2019 disease (COVID-19) in hospitalised patients is currently reported as being 26% in the United Kingdom. Increased severity of COVID-19 has been associated with advanced age, male gender, obesity, and comorbidities such as diabetes and chronic cardiac disease. In addition, the incidence of COVID-19 is higher in those who are socio-economically disadvantaged. The relationship between deprivation and health inequality is established, with a national study of admissions to critical care in the United Kingdom demonstrating an association between increased mortality and greater degree of socioeconomic deprivation. To date, little is known about the effect of existing deprivation on the outcomes of patients admitted to ICU with COVID-19. Here, we report from Glasgow, a city with some of the highest levels of socio-economic deprivation in Western Europe.

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DOI

https://doi.org/10.1177/1751143720978855

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https://www.research.ed.ac.uk/en/publications/5f8ad2fd-a92a-4ab1-a266-dbc9f46de638