BACKGROUND:

SARS-CoV-2 affects all age groups, but higher mortality rates are recorded in older people, men and with comorbidities, mainly hypertension, diabetes and obesity.

Aim:

To describe the main clinical characteristics, evolution and prognostic factors for death in older patients hospitalized for COVID-19.

MATERIALS AND METHODS:

Retrospective analysis of 128 patients aged 73 years, 66% men, hospitalized at a clinical hospital, with a diagnosis of COVID-19, admitted from May 1 to August 1, 2020. Data were collected from the clinical records, a description of the study population was made, and a univariate analysis and logistic regression were performed.

Results:

Seventy-two percent of patients had two or more comorbidities, mainly arterial hypertension in 66%, diabetes mellitus in 34% and cardiovascular disease in 19%. Forty-one percent were admitted to intensive care and 31% were connected to mechanical ventilation. In-hospital mortality was 26.6%. A multivariate analysis was performed in two blocks, finding in the first that arterial hypertension and older age significantly predict mortality. However, when previous institutionalization and immuno-suppression were included as variables in the second block, age ceased to be a significant predictor.

CONCLUSIONS:

Prognostic factors associated with death in this age group are arterial hypertension and previous institutionalization.