Epidemiological survey on the benefit of neuraminidase inhibitors on severe acute respiratory syndrome due to COVID-19

Background and objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic and its consequent severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) have taken the lives of millions since 2020. The use of neuraminidase inhibitors is a promising alternative in treating this disease, with several studies on off-label use being conducted since the beginning of the pandemic, but none of them have a large sample size and analyze multiple risk factors. The purpose of this article is to identify possible associations between various factors and risk of hospitalization, need for ventilation and death, as well as the influence of the prescription of Zanamivir and Oseltamivir on these same indicators. Methods: In this transversal study, approximately 900,000 medical records from all regions of Brazil were collected from the Ministry of Health database, and after that, proper statistical analysis of the variables was performed. Results: Hospitalization was associated with gender, ethnicity, education, local urbanization, State, and its percentage of elderly, as well as the climate. The prescription of Zanamivir and Oseltamivir was associated with higher incidence of symptoms, lower hospitalization and death rate, and lower need for invasive and non-invasive ventilation. Medical records from146,160 patients were excluded due to SARS not caused by COVID-19. Conclusion: From this data, it is possible to draw a risk profile for hospitalization by SARS and consider the use of Zanamivir and Oseltamivir as a treatment for these