Grant: Project Grant

Background: Many adults and some children with COVID-19 become critically ill and need advanced life support in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Frailty is a medical condition of reduced function and health. Adults with frailty have a lower chance of surviving critical illness. We are still learning about critically ill adults with COVID-19, and we do not have much information on how frailty affects outcomes in critically ill children, with or without COVID-19. Rehabilitation can help survivors of COVID-19 by improving strength and improve quality of life (QOL). Objectives: The main goal of this research study is to see if patients with frailty have a lower chance of surviving COVID-19 critical illness and more health problems after survivival than patients without frailty. We will also study the types of rehabilitation received by patients with COVID-19. Methods: We will include adults and children with COVID-19 who are admitted to the ICUs that participate in our study. We will gather data about each patient, including before and during their illness. Outcomes: We will collect level of frailty, function, and types of therapy, or rehabilitation received by patients. In adults, we are most interested in learning if frailty influences mortality, or death. In children, we are most interested in whether children with COVID-19 critical illness are more likely to develop frailty. We will also study post-hospital discharge location in survivors (e.g., home, rehabilitation). Relevance: The COVID-19 pandemic is a global public health crisis. We need to understand how COVID-19 critical illness affects groups of people who are at higher risk, and the impact on outcomes that are important to patients, like functioning and QOL. The results will help policy makers plan post-hospital services for survivors, help healthcare workers understand the importance of rehabilitation practice for patients with COVID-19, and researchers develop treatments to improve QOL after COVID-19.