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Introduction: Since the first reported case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‑19) in Poland, the worldwide pandemic has spread throughout the country, leading to many hospital admissions. There has been an urgent need to determine clinical characteristics of Polish patients with laboratory‑confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‑CoV 2) infection in the clinical setting., Objectives: The aim of this retrospective study was to outline characteristics and short‑ term outcomes of SARS‑CoV‑2-positive patients., Patients and Methods: We retrospectively assessed 169 consecutive patients with laboratory‑ confirmed COVID‑ 19 with regard to their clinical manifestations, radiological findings, treatment, complications, and outcomes., Results: Of the 169 patients, more than half was aged 65 years or older (88; 52.1%), 51.5% were male, and 78.3% had comorbidities. The majority of patients (106; 62.7%) were transferred from outbreak locations in medical facilities. The most common symptoms on admission were fever (42%), shortness of breath (35%), and fatigue (33%). Twenty seven (15.4%) patients required intensive care unit admission. Overall mortality was 26.3% (n = 46) and was significantly higher in patients transferred from other facilities (38 out of 106; 35.8%), than in patients admitted directly to the hospital (8 out of 63; 12.69%; P <0.001). Seventeen out of 29 patients admitted to the intensive care unit died (mortality, 58.6%), including 30 out of 41 patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome (73.2% mortality rate)., Conclusions: Polish patients with COVID‑19 have similar characteristics and risk factors for adverse outcomes to those observed in countries in which outbreaks occurred earlier. Significantly higher mortality in patients transferred from other centers warrants special attention and transfer policy should be verified.

COVID-19 disease is characterised by a wide range of symptoms that in most cases resemble flu or cold. Early detection of infections, monitoring of patients' conditions, and identification of patients with worsening symptoms became crucial during the peak of pandemic. The aim of this study was to assess and compare the performance of common early warning scores at the time of admission to an emergency department in predicting in-hospital mortality in patients with COVID-19. The study was based on a retrospective analysis of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection admitted to an emergency department between March 2020 and April 2022. The prognostic value of early warning scores in predicting in-hospital mortality was assessed using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Patients' median age was 59 years, and 52.33% were male. Among all the EWS we assessed, REMS had the highest overall accuracy (AUC 0.84 (0.83–0.85)) and the highest NPV (97.4%). REMS was the most accurate scoring system, characterised by the highest discriminative power and negative predictive value compared to the other analysed scoring systems. Incorporating these tools into clinical practice in a hospital emergency department could provide more effective assessment of mortality and, consequently, avoid delayed medical assistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In SARS-CoV-2 patients with severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), Veno-Venous Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (V-V ECMO) was shown to provide valuable treatment with reasonable survival in large multi-centre investigations. However, in some patients, conversion to modified ECMO support forms may be needed. In this single-centre retrospective registry, all consecutive patients receiving V-V ECMO between 1 March 2020 to 1 May 2021 were included and analysed. The patient cohort was divided into two groups: those who remained on V-V ECMO and those who required conversion to other modalities. Seventy-eight patients were included, with fourteen cases (18%) requiring conversions to veno-arterial (V-A) or hybrid ECMO. The reasons for the ECMO mode configuration change were inadequate drainage (35.7%), inadequate perfusion (14.3%), myocardial infarction (7.1%), hypovolemic shock (14.3%), cardiogenic shock (14.3%) and septic shock (7.1%). In multivariable analysis, the use of dobutamine (p = 0.007) and a shorter ICU duration (p = 0.047) predicted the conversion. The 30-day mortality was higher in converted patients (log-rank p = 0.029). Overall, only 19 patients (24.4%) survived to discharge or lung transplantation. Adverse events were more common after conversion and included renal, cardiovascular and ECMO-circuit complications. Conversion itself was not associated with mortality in the multivariable analysis. In conclusion, as many as 18% of patients undergoing V-V ECMO for COVID-19 ARDS may require conversion to advanced ECMO support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Lower mortality rate was observed in the group of patients treated with convalescent plasma. • Convalescent plasma may result in better outcomes when administered in the earlier stage of high-risk COVID-19 disease. • There were no significant differences in ICU stay, respirator time, nor hospitalization time. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy and safety of convalescent plasma (CP) transfusion in a group of high-risk COVID-19 patients. This prospective study included 204 patients from a single tertiary-care hospital, hospitalized with COVID-19, of whom 102 were treated with CP administration and standard care (PG) and 102 others who received standard care only (CG). The CG was selected from 336 hospitalized patients using the propensity-score matching (PSM) technique using age, MEWS score, and comorbidities. The primary outcome was mortality rate; secondary outcomes were the requirement of a ventilator, length of ventilator need, length of intensive care unit (ICU) stay, and length of overall hospital confinement. Additionally, parameters predicting death in COVID-19 patients were identified. Findings confirmed a significantly lower mortality rate in the PG versus the CG (13.7% vs. 34.3 %, p = 0.001) and a significant difference in the cumulative incidence of death between the two groups (p < 0.001). CP treatment was associated with lower risk of death (OR = 0.25 CI 95 [0.06; 0.91], p = 0.041). There were no significant differences in ICU stay, ventilator time, and hospitalization time between the two groups. A significantly lower mortality rate was observed in the group of patients treated with CP. Age, presence of cardiac insufficiency, active cancer, a ventilator requirement, and length of hospitalization significantly increased the risk of death in both groups. Our study shows that CP affords better outcomes when administrated in the earlier stage of high-risk COVID-19 disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]