predictors of intensive care unit admission in patients with confirmed coronavirus disease 2019: a cross-sectional study

Background: the coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19) has become the leading source of pneumonia outbreaks in the world. the present study aimed to compare the condition of intensive care unit (icu) and non-icu covid-19 patients in terms of epidemiological and clinical features, laboratory findings, and outcomes in three cities across iran. methods: in a cross-sectional study, 195 covid-19 patients admitted to five hospitals across iran during march-april 2020 were recruited. collected information included demographic data, laboratory findings, symptoms, medical history, and outcomes. data were analyzed using spss software with t test or mann-whitney u test (continuous data) and chi square test or fisher’s exact test (categorical variables). p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. results: of the 195 patients, 57.4% were men, and 67.7% had at least one comorbidity. the prevalence of stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and autoimmune diseases was higher in icu than in non-icu patients (p=0.042, p=0.020, and p=0.002, respectively). compared with non-icu, icu patients had significantly higher white blood cell (wbc) count (p=0.008), cardiac troponin concentrations (p=0.040), lactate dehydrogenase levels (p=0.027), erythrocyte sedimentation rates (p=0.008), and blood urea nitrogen (bun) (p=0.029), but lower hematocrit levels (p=0.001). the mortality rate in icu and non- icu patients was 48.1% and 6.1%, respectively. the risk factors for mortality included age>40 years, body mass index<18 kg/ m2, hypertension, coronary artery disease, fever, cough, dyspnea, st-segment changes, pericardial effusion, and a surge in wbc and c-reactive protein, aspartate aminotransferase, and bun. conclusion: a high index of suspicion for icu admission should be maintained in patients with positive clinical and laboratory predictive factors.