In-hospital cardiac arrest incidence and outcomes in the era of COVID-19: an observational study in a Singapore hospital.

Background: COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant strain on healthcare resources and this requires diligent resource re-allocation. We aim to describe the incidence and outcomes of in-hospital cardiac arrest (IHCA) during this period as compared to non-pandemic period.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study in a tertiary care hospital in Singapore. The study compared the incidence and outcomes of code blue activations over a 3-month period from March to May 2020 (COVID-19 period) with the same months in 2019 (pre-COVID-19 period). The primary outcome of the study was the rate of survival to hospital discharge for IHCA. The secondary outcomes included incidence of all code blue activation per 1000 hospital admissions, incidence of IHCA per 1000 hospital admissions.

Outcomes: The rate of survival to hospital discharge for IHCA was 5.88% in the COVID-19 period as compared to 10.0% in the pre-COVID-19 period [odds ratio (OR), 0.72; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.26-1.95]. Compared to pre-COVID-19 period, there were more IHCA incidences per 1000 hospital admissions in the COVID-19 period (1.86 vs 1.03; OR, 1.81; 95% CI, 0.78-4.41).

Conclusions: The study observed a trend towards higher incidence of IHCA and lower rate of survival to hospital discharge during COVID-19 pandemic compared to pre-COVID-19 period.