Abstract
Purpose :
Recent evidence has suggested an increased incidence of ocular manifestations in COVID-19 patients, including conjunctivitis, retinal diseases, and optic nerve pathologies. We performed a retrospective, observational clinical study to investigate the relationship between these ocular presentations and the severity of clinical outcomes.
Methods :
A retrospective cohort study was conducted, involving adult COVID-19 patients within the UnitedHealth Group hospital network in the United States, spanning from March 2020 to September 2021. Propensity score matching was utilized to create comparable patient groups, controlling for factors like age, gender, and comorbidities. The study focused on assessing 6-week mortality and other clinical outcomes, including upper respiratory infections, pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), acute heart injury (AHI), acute kidney injury (AKI), acute liver injury (ALI), and deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
Results :
The findings indicated that patients with retinal diseases demonstrated no statistically significant difference in 6-week mortality (p=0.87) but showed a significantly lower risk of upper respiratory infections (RR = 0.42, CI = 0.22-0.79, p = 0.007) and a higher risk of pneumonia (RR = 1.41, CI = 1.23-1.62, p < 0.001), ARDS (RR = 1.9, CI = 1.13-3.20, p < 0.02), and AKI (RR = 1.39, CI = 1.11-1.75, p = 0.005). Patients with conjunctivitis and optic nerve diseases did not show a statistically significant difference in 6-week mortality or other clinical outcomes.
Conclusions :
Our study found a significant relationship between retinal and optic nerve pathologies with COVID-19 outcomes, which may suggest a more severe disease course. Further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms behind these findings and their clinical implications, potentially aiding risk stratification and patient management.
This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, WA, May 5-9, 2024.