Monthly COVID-19 Hospitalization Rates Peaked in December 2020

For adults hospitalized with COVID-19, monthly rates of hospitalization, intensive care unit (ICU) admission, and death peaked in December 2020, according to a study published online Aug. 10 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Shikha Garg, M.D., M.P.H., from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, and colleagues conducted a pooled cross-sectional study to examine monthly clinical trends among adults hospitalized with COVID-19 from 99 counties in 14 states. Data were included for 116,743 hospitalized adults with COVID-19.

The researchers found that the peaks in monthly rates of hospitalization (105.3 per 100,000 persons), ICU admission (20.2 per 100,000 persons), and death (11.7 per 100,000 persons) occurred in December 2020. The highest rates of all three outcomes were seen among adults aged 65 years or older, men, and Hispanic or non-Hispanic Blacks. Use of remdesivir and systemic corticosteroids increased from 1.7 and 18.9 percent, respectively, in March to 53.8 and 74.2 percent, respectively, in December among 18,508 sampled hospitalized adults. From March to December, the frequency of ICU admission, mechanical ventilation, and vasopressor use decreased from 37.8, 27.8, and 22.7 percent, respectively, to 20.5, 12.3, and 12.8 percent, respectively, while use of noninvasive respiratory support increased.

"Evolving practices of health care providers, guided by increasing knowledge and experience in managing patients with COVID-19, likely contributed to improved patient outcomes," the authors write.

Two authors disclosed financial ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.