TY - JOUR T1 - Baseline characteristics and outcomes of patients with COVID-19 admitted to intensive care units in Vancouver, Canada: a case series JF - Canadian Medical Association Journal JO - CMAJ SP - E694 LP - E701 DO - 10.1503/cmaj.200794 VL - 192 IS - 26 AU - Anish R. Mitra AU - Nicholas A. Fergusson AU - Elisa Lloyd-Smith AU - Andrew Wormsbecker AU - Denise Foster AU - Andrei Karpov AU - Sarah Crowe AU - Greg Haljan AU - Dean R. Chittock AU - Hussein D. Kanji AU - Mypinder S. Sekhon AU - Donald E.G. Griesdale Y1 - 2020/06/29 UR - http://www.cmaj.ca/content/192/26/E694.abstract N2 - BACKGROUND: Pandemic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is associated with high intensive care unit (ICU) mortality. We aimed to describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes of critically ill patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in a Canadian setting.METHODS: We conducted a retrospective case series of critically ill patients with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection consecutively admitted to 1 of 6 ICUs in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, between Feb. 21 and Apr. 14, 2020. Demographic, management and outcome data were collected by review of patient charts and electronic medical records.RESULTS: Between Feb. 21 and Apr. 14, 2020, 117 patients were admitted to the ICU with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19. The median age was 69 (interquartile range [IQR] 60–75) years, and 38 (32.5%) were female. At least 1 comorbidity was present in 86 (73.5%) patients. Invasive mechanical ventilation was required in 74 (63.2%) patients. The duration of mechanical ventilation was 13.5 (IQR 8–22) days overall and 11 (IQR 6–16) days for patients successfully discharged from the ICU. Tocilizumab was administered to 4 patients and hydroxychloroquine to 1 patient. As of May 5, 2020, a total of 18 (15.4%) patients had died, 12 (10.3%) remained in the ICU, 16 (13.7%) were discharged from the ICU but remained in hospital, and 71 (60.7%) were discharged home.INTERPRETATION: In our setting, mortality in critically ill patients with COVID-19 admitted to the ICU was lower than in previously published studies. These data suggest that the prognosis associated with critical illness due to COVID-19 may not be as poor as previously reported. ER -