Articles Tagged With: mortality
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U.S. COVID-19 Deaths 58% Higher Than Reported
With many COVID-19 deaths unreported in the United States, researchers estimate the actual death toll of the pandemic is closer to 1 million than the 574,043 reported from March 1, 2020, to May 3, 2021. Looking at excess mortality data, researchers at the University of Washington’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation calculated 905,289 COVID-19 deaths occurred in the U.S. during that period. That is 58% higher than the official numbers. -
Rapid Mortality Reviews Improve Quality and Patient Safety
Staff at a California hospital found rapid mortality reviews conducted soon after a patient death resulted in the treatment team identifying opportunities to improve the patient’s care in more than 40% of the cases. The team conducting the rapid mortality reviews concluded this technique can offer advantages over the standard retrospective case reviews, provider surveys, and structured morbidity and mortality conferences. -
Long-Term Effects of Cholinesterase Inhibitors on Cognitive Decline and Mortality
Cholinesterase inhibitors are one of the few drug classes approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of patients with Alzheimer’s disease. This study shows a long-term benefit in slowing the decline of cognition, as measured by the Mini-Mental State Exam, but it is unclear if there is any benefit in quality of life.
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Vitamin D and COVID-19
Low levels of vitamin D are associated with in-hospital mortality in patients with COVID-19, but causality is unknown.
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STEMI in Post-Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement Patients
This large series of post-transcatheter aortic valve replacement patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction demonstrates elevated rates of percutaneous coronary intervention failure and high short- and intermediate-term mortality rates.
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Another Way Antibiotic Therapy Can Kill You
An analysis revealed fluoroquinolone antibiotic use was associated with later aortic diseases and mortality in patients without known aortic disease.
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Rapid Mortality Reviews Improve Quality and Patient Safety
Staff at a California hospital found rapid mortality reviews conducted soon after a patient death resulted in the treatment team identifying opportunities to improve the patient’s care in more than 40% of the cases.
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COVID-19 Patients Can Be Managed Safely with Noninvasive Respiratory Techniques
In adult patients hospitalized with COVID-19 for one month, using a noninvasive respiratory protocol that encouraged high-flow nasal cannula, noninvasive mechanical ventilation, and self-proning did not result in any significant increase in mortality.
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Pregnant Women at High Risk of COVID-19 Mortality
Case-fatality rates in pregnant patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 were 13.6 times higher than similarly aged non-pregnant women with COVID-19, according to a preprint study in Washington state.
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Excess Deaths During COVID-19
Compared with death data for the same weeks from prior years, nearly 300,000 excess deaths occurred in the United States between the weeks ending Jan. 26 through Oct. 3, 2020. Two-thirds were attributed to COVID-19.