Obesity and COVID-19 Outcomes in a Primarily Black Population

Authors

Raj DangolFollow
Olga LuryeFollow
Sadaf MustafaFollow
Lyn CamireFollow
Krupa PatelFollow
Eshetu TeferaFollow
David S. Weisman, MedStar Union Memorial Hospital, Baltimore, MD, USA and Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington, DC, USAFollow

Author Credentials

Raj K. Dangol, MBBS; Olga Lurye, MD; Sadaf Mustafa, MD; Lyn Camire, MA, ELS; Krupa Patel, MD; Eshetu Tefera, MS; David S. Weisman, DO

Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5082-8955 (David Weisman)

Abstract

ABSTRACT

Background:

Studies have noted higher COVID-19 mortality with more severe obesity in populations that included a small percentage of Black patients.

Methods:

We retrospectively analyzed COVID-19 outcomes associated with obesity in our largely African American patient population. A total of 1101 symptomatic patients with a positive COVID-19 laboratory test March 5 to June 3, 2020, were categorized into weight groups based on body mass index (BMI). Of these patients, 679 (61.7%) were Black. A total of 355 (32.2%) patients had overweight and 516 (46.9%) had obesity.

Results:

BMI was an independent risk factor for intubation and an independent predictor for ICU length of stay and intubation days. An unexpected observation was favorable outcomes in mild obesity compared with normal weight and more severe obesity, likely a result of older age and higher Charlson comorbidity index in patients with normal BMI compared with patients with mild obesity.

Conclusions:

In a diverse primarily Black population, comorbidities were a concern for adverse COVID-19 outcomes and COVID-19 outcomes were significantly worse with moderate and severe obesity.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

Recommended Citation

Dangol R, Lurye O, Mustafa S, Camire L, Patel K, Tefera E, Weisman DS. Obesity and COVID-19 Outcomes in a Primarily Black Population. Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery. 2022; 2(3). doi: 10.53785/2769-2779.1098.

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