Alsa Hussain, Hina Sabir, Syed Ali Abbas.
Clinical, Biochemical, and Radiological Features Associated with COVID-19 Pneumonia.
Pak J Chest Med Jan ;26(3):133-9.

Background: COVID-19 is an acute respiratory illness that has been declared a global pandemic by the WHO on March 11, 2020. The culprit behind this pandemic is a SARS-CoV2 strain belonging to the family of coronaviruses. The pathogens included in this family are not unfamiliar to mankind as they have given rise to previous outbreaks in the form of MERS-CoV in 2012, and SARSCoV1 in 2003. Objectives: This study was conducted with the aim to study the characteristics of COVID positive patients. Methodology: A retrospective study comprising of 52 patients was conducted at Ziauddin University Hospital, a tertiary care center located in Karachi, Pakistan. All patients belonged to Southeast Asian ethnicity. All patients included in this study were confirmed cases of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia, tested positive on reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction of nasopharyngeal or oropharyngeal swab, at the time of admission. Patients exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19, but NOT proven positive on RT-PCR were excluded from the study. Data was collected using EMR, and analyzed using SPSS v. 23.3. Results: A total of 52 patients were observed in this study from 04-29-2020 to 06-28-2020. Mean age was found to be 55.15. Majority of the cases belonged to ages between 50 to 70 years (34 patients,65.4%). Only one patient was a 5- year-old male, with pre-existing liver abscess. Conclusion: In summary, the most common clinical features of SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia can be classified in a triad of fever, cough and myalgia, while the accessory symptoms include, but are not limited to, diarrhea and headache. On presentation of any of the aforementioned traits, patients should immediately contact health care facilities to inquire about COVID-19 testing and follow proper measures of social distancing. Hypertensive and diabetic populations were found to be more susceptible to SARS-CoV-2. Therefore, maintaining a good check of glycemic control and keeping a controlled BP is the preferable aim in such patients with COVID-19. Lastly, extremely high values of D-dimer may be used as a predictor of mortality or severity of pneumonia caused by SARS-CoV-2. In-patient laboratory tests should include testing for patient's D-dimer levels.

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