OBJECTIVES: To investigate the sleep and circadian health of critical survivors 12 months after hospital discharge and to evaluate a possible effect of the severity of the disease within this context. DESIGN: Observational, prospective study. SETTING: Single-center study. PATIENTS: Two hundred sixty patients admitted to the ICU due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The cohort was composed of 260 patients (69.2% males), with a median (quartile 1–quartile 3) age of 61.5 years (52.0–67.0 yr). The median length of ICU stay was 11.0 days (6.00–21.8 d), where 56.2% of the patients required invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) revealed that 43.1% of the cohort presented poor sleep quality 12 months after hospital discharge. Actigraphy data indicated an influence of the disease severity on the fragmentation of the circadian rest-activity rhythm at the 3- and 6-month follow-ups, which was no longer significant in the long term. Still, the length of the ICU stay and the duration of IMV predicted a higher fragmentation of the rhythm at the 12-month follow-up with effect sizes (95% CI) of 0.248 (0.078–0.418) and 0.182 (0.005–0.359), respectively. Relevant associations between the PSQI and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (rho = 0.55, anxiety; rho = 0.5, depression) as well as between the fragmentation of the rhythm and the diffusing lung capacity for carbon monoxide (rho = –0.35) were observed at this time point. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings reveal a great prevalence of critical survivors presenting poor sleep quality 12 months after hospital discharge. Actigraphy data indicated the persistence of circadian alterations and a possible impact of the disease severity on the fragmentation of the circadian rest-activity rhythm, which was attenuated at the 12-month follow-up. This altogether highlights the relevance of considering the sleep and circadian health of critical survivors in the long term.
To evaluate the sleep and circadian rest-activity pattern of critical COVID-19 survivors 3 months after hospital discharge.Observational, prospective study.Single-center study.One hundred seventy-two consecutive COVID-19 survivors admitted to the ICU with acute respiratory distress syndrome.Seven days of actigraphy for sleep and circadian rest-activity pattern assessment; validated questionnaires; respiratory tests at the 3-month follow-up.The cohort included 172 patients, mostly males (67.4%) with a median (25th-75th percentile) age of 61.0 years (52.8-67.0 yr). The median number of days at the ICU was 11.0 (6.00-24.0), and 51.7% of the patients received invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV). According to the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), 60.5% presented poor sleep quality 3 months after hospital discharge, which was further confirmed by actigraphy. Female sex was associated with an increased score in the PSQI (p < 0.05) and IMV during ICU stay was able to predict a higher fragmentation of the rest-activity rhythm at the 3-month follow-up (p < 0.001). Furthermore, compromised mental health measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale was associated with poor sleep quality (p < 0.001).Our findings highlight the importance of considering sleep and circadian health after hospital discharge. Within this context, IMV during the ICU stay could aid in predicting an increased fragmentation of the rest-activity rhythm at the 3-month follow-up. Furthermore, compromised mental health could be a marker for sleep disruption at the post-COVID period.
Aims: To evaluate the impact of SARS-CoV2 infection in the clinical control and symptoms in a cohort of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. Methods: Retrospective, observational, case-control study of 39 COPD patients with COVID-19 during the period March 2020 and December 2021. These patients were matched (1:2) for their baseline COPD severity with patients not infected during the study period. The baseline respiratory evaluation of all patients was considered the one realized before the pandemic (2019) in the outpatient clinic of University Hospital Santa Maria of Lleida. Differences of long COVID-19 symptoms, dyspnea measured with modified Medical Research Council (mMRC), COPD assessment test (CAT) score and the mean number of exacerbations in the last 3 months of 2021 were analyzed and compared between groups. Results: A total of 78 non COVID-19 and 39 COVID-19 patients were included. Groups did not show significant differences in COPD classification, pulmonary function test and 6-minute walking test at baseline. No significant differences were found in control disease parameters regarding number of exacerbations (0.50 vs 0.36; p= 0.242), dyspnea (1.99 vs 1.95; p= 0.872) or CAT punctuation (14.6 vs 13.8; p= 0.557) between groups. There was only an increase in patients infected with COVID-19 in the prevalence of the following symptoms: smell or taste disorders, hair loss and pain in extremities. Conclusions: Our study suggests that COPD patients infected with COVID-19 did not show changes in the clinical control of their disease. There were only differences in the classic symptoms associated with COVID-19, such as smell or taste disturbances, hair loss and pain in the extremities
There is a limited understanding of the pathophysiology of postacute pulmonary sequelae in severe COVID-19. The aim of current study was to define the circulating microRNA (miRNA) profiles associated with pulmonary function and radiologic features in survivors of SARS-CoV-2-induced ARDS. The study included patients who developed ARDS secondary to SARS-CoV-2 infection (n = 167) and a group of infected patients who did not develop ARDS (n = 33). Patients were evaluated 3 months after hospital discharge. The follow-up included a complete pulmonary evaluation and chest computed tomography. Plasma miRNA profiling was performed using RT-qPCR. Random forest was used to construct miRNA signatures associated with lung diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (DLCO) and total severity score (TSS). Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment analyses were conducted. DLCO < 80% predicted was observed in 81.8% of the patients. TSS showed a median [P25;P75] of 5 [2;8]. The miRNA model associated with DLCO comprised miR-17-5p, miR-27a-3p, miR-126-3p, miR-146a-5p and miR-495-3p. Concerning radiologic features, a miRNA signature composed by miR-9-5p, miR-21-5p, miR-24-3p and miR-221-3p correlated with TSS values. These associations were not observed in the non-ARDS group. KEGG pathway and GO enrichment analyses provided evidence of molecular mechanisms related not only to profibrotic or anti-inflammatory states but also to cell death, immune response, hypoxia, vascularization, coagulation and viral infection. In conclusion, diffusing capacity and radiological features in survivors from SARS-CoV-2-induced ARDS are associated with specific miRNA profiles. These findings provide novel insights into the possible molecular pathways underlying the pathogenesis of pulmonary sequelae.Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04457505..Trial registration: ISRCTN.org identifier: ISRCTN16865246..