Modifiable risk factors & COVID-19 outcomes in hospital using CSO data with Health Research Consent Declaration approval

Professor Patricia Fitzpatrick and Professor Cecily Kelleher are conducting a study on the impact of modifiable risk factors on hospital outcomes following a diagnosis of COVID-19.

Conditions that raise the chances of having an illness are known as risk factors. Risk factors are either modifiable (meaning they can be changed by the individual person) or non-modifiable (meaning they cannot be changed).
The objective of the study is to assess the impact of modifiable risk factors including weight, BMI and smoking status, taking into account the effect of age, gender, ethnicity and co-morbidities including diabetes, hypertension, cancer and hypertension, on outcomes of COVID-19. We will be looking at outcomes such as ICU admission and ventilation.

The study population will be people who tested positive with COVID-19 in Ireland and were registered in the Computerised Infectious Disease Reporting (CIDR) system from April 2020 onwards.

This study will be using pseudonymised data on this population, with access to the data given under strict privacy arrangements by the CSO. This study has been approved by the Health Research Consent Declaration Committee and UCD Research Ethics Committee.