Pooled estimate of the association between obesity and COVID-19 outcomes in the general population by publication year (n=168)
| Exposure by publication year | Hospital admission+ICU+IMV* | Death | Studies with combinations of outcomes† | |||
| Studies (n) | Pooled OR (95% CI) | Studies (n) | Pooled OR (95% CI) | Studies (n) | Pooled OR (95% CI) | |
| BMI continuous (5 units) | ||||||
| Studies published in 2020 | 2 | 1.34 (1.22 to 1.47) | 9 | 1.10 (1.05 to 1.16) | 7 | 1.47 (1.16 to 1.93) |
| Studies published in 2021 | 3 | 1.28 (1.00 to 1.61) | 6 | 1.05 (0.86 to 1.28) | 6 | 1.34 (1.05 to 1.69) |
| Overweight versus normal weight | ||||||
| Studies published in 2020 | 11 | 1.30 (1.18 to 1.44) | 12 | 0.98 (0.90 to 1.06) | 1 | 1.60 (0.88 to 2.90) |
| Studies published in 2021 | 10 | 1.13 (1.05 to 1.21) | 9 | 1.18 (0.93 to 1.48) | 7 | 1.15 (0.97 to 1.37) |
| Obese versus normal weight | ||||||
| Studies published in 2020 | 13 | 1.76 (1.54 to 2.01) | 17 | 1.31 (1.10 to 1.57) | 2 | 1.58 (0.91 to 2.75) |
| Studies published in 2021 | 9 | 1.57 (1.31 to 1.88) | 10 | 1.17 (1.03 to 1.32) | 7 | 1.45 (1.25 to 1.70) |
| Obese versus non-obese | ||||||
| Studies published in 2020 | 25 | 1.82 (1.58 to 2.10) | 33 | 1.29 (1.18 to 1.42) | 8 | 1.97 (1.33 to 2.92) |
| Studies published in 2021 | 12 | 1.65 (1.51 to 1.80) | 17 | 1.24 (1.16 to 1.33) | 4 | 1.94 (1.38 to 2.73) |
| Extreme obese versus normal weight | ||||||
| Studies published in 2020 | 2 | 2.51 (1.85 to 3.42) | 6 | 1.98 (1.63 to 2.41) | 1 | 1.80 (1.47 to 2.20) |
| Studies published in 2021 | 6 | 1.98 (1.43 to 2.73) | 6 | 1.89 (1.39 to 2.56) | 1 | 1.49 (1.11 to 2.00) |
| Extreme obese versus non-obese | ||||||
| Studies published in 2020 | 3 | 2.30 (1.96 to 2.69) | 4 | 2.17 (1.49 to 3.17) | 2 | 1.69 (1.31 to 2.19) |
| Studies published in 2021 | 1 | 5.55 (3.20 to 9.62) | 3 | 3.26 (1.61 to 6.62) | 0 | – |
| Non-BMI-defined obesity‡ | ||||||
| Studies published in 2020 | 4 | 1.32 (1.16 to 1.49) | 0 | – | 3 | 1.80 (0.91 to 3.56) |
| Studies published in 2021 | 0 | – | 1 | 2.00 (1.32 to 3.02) | 2 | 1.50 (1.10 to 2.03) |
*Pooled studies included in-hospital admission, ICU and IMV. The estimates for hospital admission, ICU and IMV were not shown separately because of low number of studies.
†Studies whose endpoint was the combination of two or more of the following: hospital admission, ICU, IMV, death or other conditions pertaining to a severe disease.
‡Non-BMI-defined obesity includes neck circumference, waist circumference, waist-to-hip ratio and visceral adipose tissue.
BMI, body mass index; ICU, intensive care unit; IMV, invasive mechanical ventilation.