Abstract
Background: COVID-19, the disease caused by the newly emerging coronavirus, SARS-COV2, is still a major health burden worldwide as it continues to spread rapidly in many countries after being contained for a while. The aim of the study was to analyze the official current disease estimates in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to anticipate future risks and needs. Methods: Publicly available COVID-19 data published by the Saudi Ministry of Health were analyzed to extract statistical estimates of the disease. These include monthly case fatality rates, death rates/1000, comparison of death figures and regression analysis. Results: The number of confirmed, recovered and deaths surged in the middle of the outbreak (June and July). The case fatality rates reported later in September-November were the highest despite the decline in the number of confirmed cases. The death rates/1000 were higher during the middle of the outbreak, where the highest numbers of deaths were recorded. The number of recovered cases was the highest as well during this time. Regression analysis showed that the number of deaths was related to that of confirmed cases, especially during the peak time. On the other hand, the number of recovered cases was related to that of confirmed cases at the beginning of the outbreak. Conclusion: Statistical estimates of COVID-19 fatalities provide simple figures to understand the disease progression pattern and the health care management success in disease containment. However, the absolute numbers should never be disregarded to reflect on the real situation.
Highlights
COVID-19, the disease caused by the newly merging coronavirus (SARS-COV2) is a major health concern worldwide currently (Zhang et al, 2020)
The following data were extracted from the dashboard for this study: minimum and maximum numbers for confirmed cases of COVID-19, recovered cases of COVID-19, and deaths relating to COVID-19 reported for March-November 2020 The total number of people living in Saudi Arabia was determined according to the estimates of the United Nations that were published on the Worldometer website: https://www.worldometers.info/
As the recently emerging pandemic of COVID-19 continues to attract attention all over the world with uncertainty about when the disease will vanish and cease new waves, the need continues to grow to assess the capacity of health care authorities to cope with the current challenge and be ready for all possibilities
Summary
COVID-19, the disease caused by the newly merging coronavirus (SARS-COV2) is a major health concern worldwide currently (Zhang et al, 2020). It was reported that SARS-COV2 has a higher morbidity and mortality, and higher fatality rates than SARS-COV At this end, COVID-19 patients suffer from severe suppression of cellular-mediated immune response to the virus as evident by the low count of CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+ cells (Chen et al, 2020). COVID-19, the disease caused by the newly emerging coronavirus, SARS-COV2, is still a major health burden worldwide as it continues to spread rapidly in many countries after being contained for a while. Methods: Publicly available COVID-19 data published by the Saudi Ministry of Health were analyzed to extract statistical estimates of the disease. These include monthly case fatality rates, death rates/1000, comparison of death figures and regression analysis. The absolute numbers should never be disregarded to reflect on the real situation
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 call
