Background Most data on COVID-19 was collected in hospitalized cases. Much less is known about the spectrum of disease in entire populations. In this study, we examine a representative cohort of primarily symptomatic cases in an administrative district in Southern Germany. Methods We contacted all confirmed SARS-CoV-2 cases in the administrative district. Consenting participants answered a retrospective survey either via a telephone, electronically or via mail. Clinical and sociodemographic features were compared between hospitalized and non-hospitalized patients. Additionally, we assessed potential risk factors for hospitalization and time to hospitalization in a series of regression models. Results We included 897 participants in our study, 69% out of 1,305 total cases in the district with a mean age of 47 years (range 2–97), 51% of which were female and 47% had a pre-existing illness. The percentage of asymptomatic, mild, moderate (leading to hospital admission) and critical illness (requiring mechanical ventilation) was 54 patients (6%), 713 (79%), 97 (11%) and 16 (2%), respectively. Seventeen patients (2%) died. The most prevalent symptoms were fatigue (65%), cough (62%) and dysgeusia (60%). The risk factors for hospitalization included older age (OR 1.05 per year increase; 95% CI 1.04–1.07) preexisting lung conditions (OR 3.09; 95% CI 1.62–5.88). Female sex was a protective factor (OR 0.51; 95% CI 0.33–0.77). Conclusion This representative analysis of primarily symptomatic COVID-19 cases confirms age, male sex and preexisting lung conditions but not cardiovascular disease as risk factors for severe illness. Almost 80% of infection take a mild course, whereas 13% of patients suffer moderate to severe illness. Trial registration German Clinical Trials Register, DRKS00022926. URL: https://www.drks.de/drks_web/setLocale_EN.do
【초록키워드】 COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Hospitalized, mechanical ventilation, Hospitalization, fatigue, Infection, lung, Sex, cardiovascular disease, Symptom, risk factor, cough, Cohort, Asymptomatic, Germany, symptomatic, clinical, female, Patient, Older age, Mild, age, Hospital admission, disease, Critical, moderate, patients, retrospective, Analysis, Male sex, Factor, 95% CI, COVID-19 case, potential risk, protective factor, participant, symptomatic case, regression models, Sociodemographic, MOST, populations, feature, prevalent, Course, Result, died, was collected, condition, less, 【제목키워드】 COVID-19, Analysis, retrospective cohort study, description,