1. INTRODUCTION
On March 11, 2020, due to the alarmingly increasing number of global
cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), the World Health
Organization declared the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome
coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) as a pandemic.1 As of
August 18, 2020, the number of globally confirmed COVID-19 cases
exceeded 21 million, the number of existing active cases was more than 6
million of which severe patients accounted for 1%, and the mortality
rate in 216 countries and regions, based on the cases which had an
outcome, was 5%.2.3 With the spread of COVID-19
around the world, the intensive care unit (ICU) is one of the major
rescue departments for severe pneumonia ensuing from
COVID-19.4
Numerous studies have described preliminary findings of the epidemiology
of COVID-19 patients,5 clinical features,
outcomes, and risk factors for death.6-9 However,
there are relatively few studies that have reported clinical
characteristics and survival outcomes of COVID-19 critically ill
patients. A retrospective study from Italy has published baseline
characteristics of COVID-19 ICU hospitalized
patients.10 Similarly, two retrospective studies from
Wuhan also described the severe clinical course and outcome of COVID-19
critically ill patients.11,12 Another study from Wuhan
has reported the poor outcomes in cancer patients infected with
COVID-19.13
Current research shows that the mortality rate of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia
patients in the ICU is extremely high, which exerts significant pressure
on hospital intensive care resources.11,13 More
evidence is required to better observe and summarize the characteristics
and outcomes of COVID-19 ICU patients, which would be essential to guide
the treatment of ICU patients and the rational allocation of intensive
care resources. This study aimed to describe the demographics, survival
status, clinical outcomes, and the risk factors of COVID-19 diagnosed
patients who were admitted to the ICU of District Headquarter (DHQ)
Hospital, Faisalabad (Pakistan) from May 10 to July 10, 2020.