Course of disease and risk factors for hospitalization in outpatients with a SARS-CoV-2 infection

Abstract

We analyzed symptoms and comorbidities as predictors of hospitalization in 710 outpatients in North-East Germany with PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. During the first 3 days of infection, commonly reported symptoms were fatigue (71.8%), arthralgia/myalgia (56.8%), headache (55.1%), and dry cough (51.8%). Loss of smell (anosmia), loss of taste (ageusia), dyspnea, and productive cough were reported with an onset of 4 days. Anosmia or ageusia were reported by only 18% of the participants at day one, but up to 49% between days 7 and 9. Not all participants who reported ageusia also reported anosmia. Individuals suffering from ageusia without anosmia were at highest risk of hospitalization (OR 6.8, 95% CI 2.5–18.1). They also experienced more commonly dyspnea and nausea (OR of 3.0, 2.9, respectively) suggesting pathophysiological connections between these symptoms. Other symptoms significantly associated with increased risk of hospitalization were dyspnea, vomiting, and fever. Among basic parameters and comorbidities, age > 60 years, COPD, prior stroke, diabetes, kidney and cardiac diseases were also associated with increased risk of hospitalization. In conclusion, due to the delayed onset, ageusia and anosmia may be of limited use in differential diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2. However, differentiation between ageusia and anosmia may be useful for evaluating risk for hospitalization.

Experiences and perceptions of COVID-19 infection and vaccination among Palestinian refugees in Jerash camp and Jordanian citizens: a comparative cross-sectional study by face-to-face interviews

“…Furthermore, the most frequently reported symptoms were general fatigue, headache, fever, anosmia and/or ageusia, and cough, respectively, with no significant differences between refugees and citizens. These symptoms were also reported in many previous studies from different regions [ 35 – 37 ].…”

“…Furthermore, the most frequently reported symptoms were general fatigue, headache, fever, anosmia and/or ageusia, and cough, respectively, with no significant differences between refugees and citizens. These symptoms were also reported in many previous studies from different regions [35][36][37]. Interestingly, the results obtained in this study demonstrated that the perceptions and experiences of COVID-19 vaccination were different between refugees and citizens.…”

Improved outcomes in patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia infected during the omicron BA.5 subvariant surge

“…Among the latter, the independent risk factors for hospitalization were diabetes, fever and active CLL therapy. Similar to our findings, diabetes, fever and active treatment for CLL have previously been reported as risk factors for severe COVID‐19 and mortality 4‐6 . Especially it is of clinical importance that treatment with venetoclax plus anti‐CD20 antibodies is shown to be a risk factor for hospitalization, a finding that is probably explained mainly by the known association between anti‐CD20‐based therapies and the development of severe COVID‐19 7 .…”

“…Similar to our findings, diabetes, fever and active treatment for CLL have previously been reported as risk factors for severe COVID-19 and mortality. [4][5][6] Especially it is of clinical importance that treatment with venetoclax plus anti-CD20 antibodies is shown to be a risk factor for hospitalization, a finding that is probably explained mainly by the known association between anti-CD20-based therapies and the development of severe COVID-19. 7 Interestingly, 32.4% (11/34) of the hospitalized patients actually had mild to moderate COVID-19.…”

Proteomic profiling identifies biomarkers of COVID-19 severity

“…Clinical observations rapidly identified age as a primary risk factor for hospitalization and mortality (Buttenschon et al, 2022; Schafer et al, 2022). Age-related risk for severe COVID-19 has been a core focus of scientific investigation, and a variety of plausible explanations have been presented in the literature.…”