# Exploring the Clinical Features, Management of Hypertension, and Predictors of Severity in Hospitalized Hypertensive COVID-19 Patients

## TL;DR

This study identifies factors that predict severe outcomes in hospitalized patients with both hypertension and COVID-19.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into severity predictors specific to hypertensive patients with COVID-19.

## Key findings

- Male gender, fever, and shortness of breath are significant predictors of severity in hypertensive COVID-19 patients.
- Low oxygen saturation and elevated D-dimer levels strongly correlate with disease severity in this patient group.

## Abstract

Background

Hypertension significantly contributes to the severity, prolonged hospitalization, the need for intensive care, and mortality of COVID-19 patients. However, the data is still evolving. This study investigated the predictors of severity among hypertensive COVID-19 patients.

Methodology

This cohort study included 333 hospitalized hypertensive COVID-19 patients at the Indus Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan, from April 2021 to October 2021. The study evaluated the clinical features, antihypertensive therapy, and predictors of severity. A multivariable binary logistic regression model was used to determine severity predictors using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 27.0 (Released 2020; IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA).

Results

The majority of hypertensive COVID-19 patients were females (54.7%), aged <65 years (55.8%), and coexisted with diabetes mellitus (56.5%). The independent predictors of severity were male (aOR 2.65, 95% CI, 1.08-6.51; p < 0.033), fever (aOR 3.52, 95% CI, 1.24-9.92; p = 0.017), shortness of breath (aOR 4.49, 95% CI, 1.73-11.63; p = 0.002), oxygen saturation (<90%) (aOR 87.39, 95% CI, 19.15-398.75; p < 0.001), and D-dimer (>0.5 mcg/ml) (aOR 3.03, 95% CI, 1.19-7.71; p = 0.020).

Conclusions

Our study concluded that males with fever before admission, shortness of breath, lower oxygen saturation, and elevated D-dimer are the predictors of severity among hypertensive COVID-19 patients.