Oropharyngeal dysphagia is one of the complications of endotracheal intubation. As expected, cases of dysphagia following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) reported to date have all been intubated. We here report a case of sarcopenic dysphagia following severe COVID‐19 pneumonia in a nonintubated older adult. The patient was an 85‐year‐old male who was readmitted to the hospital with dysphagia and subsequent aspiration pneumonia in the first week after his discharge from the COVID‐19 unit. On physical examination, the patient was sarcopenic and malnourished. Flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) revealed aspiration into the airway. Enteral feeding was initiated and the infusion rate gradually increased to achieve the desired protein‐energy targets. Control FEES 2 months after discharge showed recovery of swallowing function, with no apparent penetration or aspiration. Clinicians caring for patients with COVID‐19 should be aware that dysphagia, which is associated with increased mortality in older adults, may occur even in the absence of intubation. We recommend that the evaluation of dysphagia be part of the clinical assessment in older COVID‐19 patients with malnutrition or sarcopenia.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between hospital admission potentially inappropriate medications use (PIM) and in-hospital mortality of COVID-19, considering other possible factors related to mortality.METHODS: The Turkish inappropriate medication use in the elderly (TIME) criteria were used to define PIM. The primary outcome of this study was in-hospital mortality.RESULTS: We included 201 older adults (mean age 73.1 +/- 9.4, 48.9% females). The in-hospital mortality rate and prevalence of PIM were 18.9% (n=38) and 96% (n=193), respectively. The most common PIM according to TIME to START was insufficient vitamin D and/or calcium intake per day. Proton -pump inhibitor use for multiple drug indications was the most prevalent PIM based on TIME to STOP findings. Mortality was related to PIM in univariate analysis (p=0.005) but not in multivariate analysis (p=0.599). Older age (hazards ratio (HR): 1.08; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.02-1.13; p=0.005) and higher Nutritional Risk Screening 2002 (NRS-2002) scores were correlated with in-hospital mortality (HR: 1.29; 95%CI 1.00-1.65; p=0.042).CONCLUSION: Mortality was not associated with PIM. Older age and malnutrition were related to in-hospital mortality in COVID-19.