Clinical and Laboratory Characteristics of COVID-19 Infection in Patients Presenting to A Tertiary Care Hospital

Background and Objective: COVID-19 disease is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) having a wide variety of clinical features ranging from asymptomatic carriers to respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation. The objective of the study was to analyze the spectrum of different symptoms, laboratory findings and complications in patients who were admitted in either COVID ward or intensive care unit (ICU) of a local hospital.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study of the medical records of 100 COVID-19 disease patients with PCR detected SARS-CoV-2 infection were collected. Participant information was retrospectively obtained from the hospital medical records which included clinical records and laboratory findings. All statistical analyses were done using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21.

Results: The mean age of the patients was 50.8 ±5.86 with male predominance (79%). Most frequent co-morbidities were diabetes mellitus (42%) and hypertension (36%). Most frequent symptoms were fever (95.9%) and fatigue (95.9%) followed by dry cough (86.5%), myalgia (85.1) and shortness of breath (70%). Amongst the patients admitted, leukocyte count was 10.95 x 10³, C-reactive protein (CRP) was 12.8mg/dl, ferritin was 730.8ng/ml and Lactate Dehydrogenase (LDH) was found to be 1254.7 U/l. Hepatic and renal functions were borderline deranged.

Conclusion: COVID-19 disease has a wide spectrum of clinical symptoms. Patients with raised inflammatory markers have severe disease and are more likely in need of an ICU care. By carefully observing these markers may help in better management of COVID-19 disease.