Comparison of Incidence and Prognosis of Myocardial Injury in Patients with COVID-19-Related Respiratory Failure and Other Pulmonary Infections: A Contemporary Cohort Study

Myocardial injury (MI) is frequent in critically ill patients with COVID-19, but its pathogenesis remains unclear. We hypothesized that MI is not solely due to viral infection by SARS-CoV-2 but rather due to the common pathophysiological mechanisms associated with severe pulmonary infections and respiratory failure. This contemporary cohort study was designed to compare the incidence of MI in patients with acute respiratory failure caused by COVID-19 to patients with other pulmonary infections. In addition, we aimed to investigate whether MI was a distinct risk factor for in-hospital mortality in patients with COVID-19 compared to those with non-COVID-19 infections. This study included 1444 patients with COVID-19 (55.5% men; age 58 (46;68) years) and 182 patients with other pulmonary infections (46.9% men; age 62 (44;73) years). The incidence of MI at ICU admission was lower in COVID-19 patients (36.4%) compared to non-COVID-19 patients (56%), and this difference persisted after adjusting for age, sex, coronary artery disease, heart failure, SOFA score, lactate, and C-reactive protein (RR 0.84 (95% CI, 0.71-0.99)). MI at ICU admission was associated with a 59% increase in mortality (RR 1.59 (1.36-1.86); p < 0.001), and there was no significant difference in the mortality between patients with COVID-19 and those with other pulmonary infections (p = 0.271). We concluded that MI is less frequent in patients with critical COVID-19 pneumonia and respiratory failure compared to those with other types of pneumonia. The occurrence of MI is a significant risk factor for in-hospital mortality, regardless of the etiology of the pulmonary infection.