Abstract
BackgroundThe unexpected outbreak of the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused more than 49 million cases and an estimated 2,000,000 associated deaths worldwide. In Germany, there are currently more than 2,000,000 laboratory-confirmed coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases including 51,800 deaths. However, regional differences also became apparent and with the second wave of infections, the detailed characterization of COVID-19 patients is crucial to early diagnosis and disruption of chains of infections.MethodsHanding out detailed questionnaires to all individuals tested for COVID-19, we evaluated the clinical characteristics of negative and positive tested individuals.Expression of symptoms, symptom duration and association between predictor variables (i.e. age, gender) and a binary outcome (olfactory and gustatory dysfunction) were assessed.ResultsOverall, the most common symptoms among individuals who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 were fatigue, headache, and cough. Olfactory and gustatory dysfunction were also reported by many SARS-CoV-2 negative individuals, more than 20% of SARS-CoV-2 negative tested individuals in our study reported olfactory and gustatory dysfunction. Independent of SARS-CoV-2 status, more females displayed symptoms of gustatory (29.8%, p = 0.0041) and olfactory dysfunction (22.9%, p = 0.0174) compared to men.ConclusionsBringing early SARS-CoV-2 tests to the populations at risk must be a main focus for the upcoming months. The reliability of olfactory and gustatory dysfunction in COVID-19 negative tested individuals requires deeper investigation in the future.
Highlights
The novel COVID-19 coronavirus infection currently causing a global pandemic may present on a spectrum from asymptomatic to severe infection affecting almost every possible organ system [1]
Demographics and clinical characteristics A total of 711 patients suspected of COVID-19 were included in this study, with 43 (6%) patients tested positive via PCR and 668 patients (94%) tested negative
The mean age of the SARS-CoV-2 negative tested subgroup was comparable with 40.9 ± 14.5 years and 41 ± 16.2 years in the COVID-19 positive tested subgroup (p = 0.9722)
Summary
The novel COVID-19 coronavirus infection currently causing a global pandemic may present on a spectrum from asymptomatic to severe infection affecting almost every possible organ system [1]. As a second wave of COVID-19 is ongoing, epidemiological studies are important in order to characterize symptoms, comorbidities, age and even country specific characteristics of the disease in order to identify infected patients as early as possible [4]. The unexpected outbreak of the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARSCoV-2) caused more than 49 million cases and an estimated 2,000,000 associated deaths worldwide. Regional differences became apparent and with the second wave of infections, the detailed characterization of COVID-19 patients is crucial to early diagnosis and disruption of chains of infections
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