Long-term oxygen therapy to reduce length of hospital stay in COVID-19

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of long-term oxygen therapy as a strategy to reduce hospitalization time in patients affected by COVID-19. Between April and December 2021, COVID-19 patients with stable clinical conditions needing supplementary oxygen therapy during hospitalization were oriented to have hospital discharge with long-term oxygen therapy and reassessment after 15 days. A total of 62 patients were evaluated and, 15 days after discharge, 69% of patients had suspended long-term oxygen therapy, with no difference between the groups admitted to the intensive care unit or the ward (p=0.319). Among the individuals who needed to maintain long-term oxygen therapy, in addition to worse P/F ratio (265±57 vs. 345±51; p