| | Variable | Dexamethasone (n = 83) | Usual care (n = 137) | value |
| | Age, years, median (IQR) | 62 (53–70) | 67 (56–75) | 0.022 | | Female sex, n (%) | 26 (31) | 57 (42) | 0.127 | | BMI ≥30, kg/m2, n (%) | 40/65 (62) | 52/92 (57) | 0.530 | | Positive RT-PCR SARS-CoV-2, n (%) | 58 (70) | 83 (61) | 0.164 | | Comorbidities, n (%) | 62 (75) | 111 (81) | 0.183 | | Hypertension | 45 (54) | 88 (64) | 0.060 | | Other CVD | 22 (27) | 46 (34) | 0.194 | | Chronic lung disease | 10 (12) | 16 (12) | 0.981 | | Chronic kidney disease | 2 (2) | 11 (8) | 0.075 | | Diabetes mellitus | 19 (23) | 41 (30) | 0.188 | | Malignancy | 10 (12) | 15 (11) | 0.869 | | Systolic BP, mm Hg, median (IQR) | 130 (120–140) | 130 (117–140) | 0.708 | | Diastolic BP, mm Hg, median (IQR) | 75 (70–85) | 75 (69–80) | 0.625 | | HR, beats/min, median (IQR) | 84 (75–91) | 85 (74–100) | 0.585 | | RR, breaths/min, median (IQR) | 28 (24–35) | 25 (22–30) | 0.007 | | SaO2, %, median (IQR) | 88 (80–90) | 89 (82–94) | 0.025 | | Fever ≥38o C (≥100.4°F), n (%) | 43 (52) | 51 (37) | 0.026 | | qSOFA, n (%) | | 0 | 3 (4) | 16 (12) | 0.039 | | 1 | 60 (72) | 73 (53) | 0.005 | | 2 | 13 (16) | 29 (21) | 0.314 | | 3 | 7 (8) | 19 (14) | 0.226 | | Lung injury on chest CT scan, %, median (IQR) | 64 (52–76) | 54 (36–74) | 0.017 | | CRP, mg/L, median (IQR) | 157 (97–244) | 118 (53–209) | 0.009 | | Ferritin, ng/mL, median (IQR) | 691 (556–715) | 635 (376–705) | 0.024 | | Interleukin-6, pg/mL, median (IQR) | 92 (35–156) | 81 (24–212) | 0.892 | | D-dimer, ng/mL, median (IQR) | 1,424 (665–3,446) | 1,556 (810–3,912) | 0.575 | | Creatinine, mcmol/L, median (IQR) | 92 (75–117) | 91 (71–118) | 0.850 | | Procalcitonin ≥0.5 ng/mL, n (%) | 23/74 (31) | 35/110 (32) | 0.916 | | Arterial blood gas analysis, median (IQR) | | Blood pH | 7.41 (7.33–7.46) | 7.38 (7.32–7.43) | 0.150 | | PaO2, mm Hg | 83 (68–110) | 89 (68–113) | 0.812 | | PaCO2, mm Hg | 39 (33–48) | 38 (32–51) | 0.983 | | Complete blood count, median (IQR) | | Hemoglobin, g/L | 126 (113–137) | 124 (103–139) | 0.785 | | Leukocytes, ×109/L | 8.0 (6.0–11.5) | 8.2 (5.2–12.0) | 0.948 | | Neutrophils, ×109/L | 6.6 (4.6–10.0) | 6.8 (3.9–10.4) | 0.836 | | Lymphocytes, ×109/L | 0.7 (0.4–1.0) | 0.7 (0.5–1.1) | 0.579 | | Platelets, ×109/L | 233 (169–318) | 200 (146–283) | 0.134 |
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BMI, body mass index; BP, blood pressure; CRP, C-reactive protein; CT, computed tomography; CVD, cardiovascular disease; HR, heart rate; ICU, intensive care unit; IQR, interquartile range; PaCO2, partial pressure of carbon dioxide; PaO2, partial pressure of oxygen; qSOFA, quick sequential organ failure assessment score; RR, respiratory rate; RT-PCR, reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; SaO2, oxygen saturation of arterial blood; SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Bold values denote statistical significance.
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