Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected almost every country worldwide, including all 22 Arab countries. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to follow the prevalence of COVID-19 in all Arab countries. In this review, we aimed to assess the 12-month prevalence of COVID-19 in Arab countries and to compare these findings with other significantly affected countries. World Health Organization, Worldometer, and Ministries of Health websites were used to search for COVID-19 data in all Arab countries. The period covered started from February 2020 to February 2021. In all Arab countries, the median age of the population was 26.25 years. As of March 01, 2021, the total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in all Arab countries was 4,259,756. Bahrain, Qatar, Lebanon, Kuwait, and United Arab Emirates had the highest reported number of confirmed COVID-19 cases per million population. The total number of COVID-19 deaths was 72,950, with predominance in Lebanon, followed by Tunisia, Jordan, Palestine, and Iraq. In comparison with the topmost affected countries, and based on both the highest number of confirmed and deaths per million population, Arab countries ranked second last before India, with 9,646 and 165 cases, respectively. Among the Arab countries, Qatar, Bahrain, and Lebanon showed the highest number of recovered, confirmed, and death cases per million populations, respectively. The number of confirmed and death cases among all Arab countries triggered significant worries about morbidity and mortality of COVID-19, respectively. However, the younger population in Arab countries may have contributed to fewer COVID-19 deaths in comparison with the topmost affected countries.
Highlights
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly transmittable viral infection
In comparison with the topmost affected countries, the data obtained from COVID-19 confirmed cases showed that Arab countries are ranked fourth after USA, India, and Brazil
Younger population in the Arab world may contribute to the less death cases of COVID-19 in comparison with the topmost affected countries
Summary
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly transmittable viral infection. By March 01, 2021, it has infected 114,687,163 and caused 2,543,285 deaths around the globe [1]. COVID19 is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) [2], a positivesense, single-stranded RNA virus belonging to the genus Betacoronavirus [3]. Betacoronavirus includes severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), both of which have caused SARS and MERS in 2003 and 2012, respectively [4]. COVID-19 patients showed that the disease could progress to pneumonia, hypoxemia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, septic shock, blood clotting dysfunction, multiple organ failure and death [6]. Several studies reported that close contact with COVID-19 patients are at high risk of infection [7,8]. Several studies reported that men are more prone to infection and death of COVID-19 than women [13,14,15]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
