Clinical Characteristics and Risk Factors Associated with Severe Disease Progression among COVID-19 Patients In Wad Medani Isolation Centers: A Multicenter Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study.

Abstract

BackgroundSince December 2019, (COVID‐19) has had a significant impact on global health systems. Because little is known about the clinical characteristics and risk factors connected with COVID‐19 severity in Sudanese patients, it is vital to summarize the clinical characteristics of COVID‐19 patients and to investigate the risk factors linked to COVID‐19 severity.ObjectivesWe aimed to assess the clinical characteristics of COVID‐19 patients and look into risk factors associated with COVID‐19 severity.MethodsThis is a retrospective cross‐sectional study that took place in two Isolation Centers in Wad Medani, Gezira State, Sudan. Four hundred and eighteen patients were included between May 2020 and May 2021. All COVID‐19 patients over the age of 18 who were proven COVID‐19 positive by nucleic acid testing or had characteristics suggestive of COVID‐19 on a chest CT scan and had a complete medical record in the study period were included.ResultsThe participants in this study were 418 confirmed COVID‐19 cases with a median age of 66.313 years. There were 279 men (66.7%) among the patients. The most prevalent comorbidities were hypertension (n = 195; 46.7%) and diabetes (n = 187; 44.7%). Fever (n = 303; 72.5%), cough (n = 278; 66.5%), and dyspnea (n = 256; 61.2%) were the most prevalent symptoms at the onset of COVID‐19. The overall mortality rate (n = 148) was 35.4%. Patients with severe illness had a mortality rate of 42.3% (n = 118). Older age, anemia, neutrophilia, and lymphocytopenia, as well as higher glucose, HbA1c, and creatinine levels, were all linked to severe COVID‐19, according to the chi‐square test and analysis of variance analysis.ConclusionSixteen variables were found to be associated with COVID‐19 severity. These patients are more prone to go through a serious infection and as a result have a greater death rate than those who do not have these characteristics.