MELD-Na score, Acute Physiologic and Chronic Health Evaluation II score, and SOFA score and their association with mortality in critically ill COVID-19 patients with liver injury: A retrospective single-center study.

BACKGROUND

The Acute Physiologic and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHE-II), Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), and Model for End-Stage Liver Disease modified for Sodium concentration (MELD-Na) scores are validated to predict disease mortality. We studied the prognostic utility of these scoring systems in critically ill coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients with liver injury.

METHODS

This was a retrospective study of 291 confirmed COVID-19 and liver injury patients requiring intensive care unit level of care. These patients required supplemental oxygen requirement with fraction of inspired oxygen >55% and/or the use of vasopressor. MELD-Na, SOFA, and APACHE-II scores were adjusted. Outcomes were mortality and length of stay (LOS).

RESULTS

SOFA (odds ratio: 0.78, 95% confidence interval: 0.63-0.98, < 0.05) was associated with decreased odds for mortality. APACHE-II and MELD-Na were not associated with mortality or LOS.

CONCLUSIONS

We suggest that the novel nature of COVID-19 necessitates new scoring systems to predict outcomes in critically ill COVID-19 patients with liver injury.