Epidemiological characteristics of COVID-19 patients in convalescence period

• Published in: Epidemiology & Infection Vol. 148; p. e108
• Main Authors: Liu, B M, Yang, Q Q, Zhao, L Y, Xie, W, Si, X Y
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Cambridge University Press 01.01.2020
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Antibiotics; Antiviral agents; Betacoronavirus; Cardiovascular disease; Chest; Convalescence; Coronavirus Infections - diagnostic imaging; Coronavirus Infections - drug therapy; Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology; Coronaviruses; Cough; COVID-19; Epidemiology; Female; Gastrointestinal system; Gastrointestinal tract; Humans; Male; Medical treatment; Middle Aged; Original Paper; Pandemics; Patients; Pharyngitis; Pneumonia, Viral - diagnostic imaging; Pneumonia, Viral - drug therapy; Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology; Radiography, Thoracic; Ribonucleic acid; RNA; RNA, Viral - analysis; SARS-CoV-2; Signs and symptoms; Sputum; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; Tuberculosis; Viral diseases; COVID-19; epidemiological characteristics; SARS-CoV-2; Convalescence period
• ISSN: 0950-2688; 1469-4409
• DOI: 10.1017/S0950268820001181

This study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics and to analyse the epidemiological features of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients during convalescence. In this study, we enrolled 71 confirmed cases of COVID-19 who were discharged from hospital and transferred to isolation wards from 6 February to 26 March 2020. They were all employees of Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University or their family members of which three cases were <18 years of age. Clinical data were collected and analysed statistically. Forty-one cases (41/71, 57.7%) comprised medical faculty, young and middle-aged patients (aged ⩽60 years) accounted for 81.7% (58/71). The average isolation time period for all adult patients was 13.8 ± 6.1 days. During convalescence, RNA detection results of 35.2% patients (25/71) turned from negative to positive. The longest RNA reversed phase time was 7 days. In all, 52.9% of adult patients (36/68) had no obvious clinical symptoms, and the remaining ones had mild and non-specific clinical symptoms (e.g. cough, sputum, sore throat, disorders of the gastrointestinal tract etc.). Chest CT signs in 89.7% of adult patients (61/68) gradually improved, and in the others, the lesions were eventually absorbed and improved after short-term repeated progression. The main chest CT manifestations of adult patients were normal, GGO or fibre streak shadow, and six patients (8.8%) had extrapulmonary manifestations, but there was no significant correlation with RNA detection results (r = -0.008, P > 0.05). The drug treatment was mainly symptomatic support therapy, and antibiotics and antiviral drugs were ineffective. It is necessary to re-evaluate the isolation time and standard to terminate isolation for discharged COVID-19 patients.