• Erich Pawelka, Mario Karolyi, Theresa Mader, Sara Omid, Hasan Kelani, Sebastian Baumgartner, Sarah Ely, Wolfgang Hoepler, Bernd Jilma, Franz Koenig, Hermann Laferl, Marianna Traugott, Michael Turner, Tamara Seitz, Christoph Wenisch, and Alexander Zoufaly.
• Department for Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Kaiser-Franz-Josef Hospital, Kundratstraße 3, 1100, Vienna, Austria. erich.pawelka@gesundheitsverbund.at.
• Infection. 2021 Oct 1; 49 (5): 907-916.

BackgroundCOVID-19 is regularly compared to influenza. Mortality and case-fatality rates vary widely depending on incidence of COVID-19 and the testing policy in affected countries. To date, data comparing hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and influenza is scarce.MethodsData from patients with COVID-19 were compared to patients infected with influenza A (InfA) and B (InfB) virus during the 2017/18 and 2018/19 seasons. All patients were ≥ 18 years old, had PCR-confirmed infection and needed hospital treatment. Demographic data, medical history, length-of-stay (LOS), complications including in-hospital mortality were analyzed.ResultsIn total, 142 patients with COVID-19 were compared to 266 patients with InfA and 300 with InfB. Differences in median age (COVID-19 70.5 years vs InfA 70 years and InfB 77 years, p < 0.001) and laboratory results were observed. COVID-19 patients had fewer comorbidities, but complications (respiratory insufficiency, pneumonia, acute kidney injury, acute heart failure and death) occurred more frequently. Median length-of-stay (LOS) was longer in COVID-19 patients (12 days vs InfA 7 days vs. InfB 7 days, p < 0.001). There was a fourfold higher in-hospital mortality in COVID-19 patients (23.2%) when compared with InfA (5.6%) or InfB (4.7%; p < 0.001).ConclusionIn hospitalized patients, COVID-19 is associated with longer LOS, a higher number of complications and higher in-hospital mortality compared to influenza, even in a population with fewer co-morbidities. This data, a high reproduction number and limited treatment options, alongside excess mortality during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, support the containment strategies implemented by most authorities.© 2021. Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.

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