ventilator-associated pneumonia in covid-19 patients: prevalence and associated factors

Background: covid 19 pandemic has resulted in increased icu admission, with many patients requiring mechanical ventilation resulting in more incidences of ventilator associated pneumonia (vap). despite vast research on covid 19 complications, very few studies have looked at the risk factors of vap in this population. the purpose of this study is to bridge this gap by identifying clinical and laboratory predictors of vap in critically ill covid-19 patients.methods: shahid beheshti hospital, kashan was the site of a retrospective analysis of 235 covid 19 icu patients requiring mechanical ventilation. therapeutic interventions were assessed and clinical symptoms, laboratory markers were assessed.results: fever and chills were also found to be associated with nearly a threefold increase in risk (p < 0.05) as was abnormal heart rate, which increased the risk fourfold (p < 0.001), and wbc and esr significantly correlated with vap occurrence. in addition, patients not treated with tocilizumab had a sixfold increase in risk of vap (p < 0.001). early identification and targeted interventions to mitigate the risk of vap in covid-19 patients being mechanically ventilated is a focus of this study.conclusion: results indicate immunomodulatory therapy may provide a protective role, and underscore the importance of strict infection control. future research should model causal mechanisms and develop best treatment strategies to reduce the incidence of vap.