COVID-19 Readmission Is Highest Among Refugees in Denmark

In several countries, a higher incidence of COVID-19 is seen in vulnerable groups including certain immigrant groups compared to host population. This study compared the severity of COVID-19 at the onset of admission and the odds ratio (OR) of COVID-19 readmission within 30 days among Refugees, Others, and native Danes. This cross-sectional study was based on clinical data from 159 COVID-19 positive patients admitted at hospitals in Region Midtjylland in 2020. The medians with interquartile ranges revealed no major differences between the groups in status at admission based on certain clinical parameters or biomarkers. Refugees (51.8%) and Others (41.7%) had less comorbidities than native Danes (61.2%) in the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI). Native Danes constituted the largest percentage of the highest CCI scores. 17.5% of all 159 patients were readmitted. The readmission prevalence among Refugees was 23.1%, 8.3% in Others, and 17.0% in native Danes. When adjusting for age, sex, and CCI, Refugees had an OR of 1.88 (95% CI, 0.61-5.74) and Others had an OR of 0.61 (95% CI, 0.07-5.41) of readmission compared to native Danes. Refugees had the highest prevalence and adjusted OR for COVID-19 readmission. However, the results of the logistic regression were not statistically significant.