Clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes among the hospitalized elderly patients with COVID-19 during the late pandemic phase in central Taiwan

Background: There is a lack of information regarding outcomes of elderly patients hospitalized with COVID-19 following the widespread use of COVID-19 vaccines and antiviral agents. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted between January and August 2022, enrolling patients aged 65 years or older. Patients were categorized into two groups: ‘old’ (65–79 years) and ‘oldest-old’ (80 years or more). Multivariate regression was employed to identify independent prognostic factors for in-hospital mortality. Results: A total of 797 patients were enrolled, including 428 old and 369 oldest-old patients. In each subgroup, 66.6 % and 59.6 % of patients received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, respectively. Approximately 40 % of the patients received oral antiviral agents either before or upon hospital admission. A greater percentage of the oldest-old patients received remdesivir (53.4 % versus 39.7 %, p