Summary of the demographic and clinical characteristics
| Characteristic | COVID-19-ICU (n=27) | Control-ICU (n=10) | P value |
| Age, year | 71 (61–74) | 67 (64–73) | 0.827 |
| Sex, male (%) | 21 (78) | 6 (60) | 0.248 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 27 (26–31) | 24 (21–28) | 0.014 |
| Duration ICU stay, days | 13 (8–27) | 11 (3.3–12.3) | 0.113 |
| Duration of IMV, days | 13 (6–27) | 9 (1–12) | 0.053 |
| Duration of NMB administration, hours | 0 (0–98) | 0 (0–240) | 0.821 |
| Systemic steroid administration, n (%) | 12 (46) | 7 (70) | 0.182 |
| Maximal CRP, mg/L | 310 (260–383) | 312 (135–481) | 0.969 |
Data are expressed as median (IQR) or percentage (n, (%). P values were obtained from Mann-Whitney U test or χ2 test. Steroid administration was defined as more than 10 mg for >2 days.
BMI, body mass index; CRP, C reactive protein; ICU, intensive care unit; IMV, invasive mechanical ventilation; NMB, neuromuscular blocking agents.