ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 is rapidly scattering worldwide, and the number of cases in the Eastern Mediterranean Region is rising, there is a need for immediate targeted actions. We designed a longitudinal study in a hot outbreak zone to analyze the serial findings between infected patients for detecting temporal changes from February 2020. In a hospital-based open-cohort study, patients are followed from admission until one year from their discharge (the 1st, 4th, 12th weeks, and the first year). The measurements included demographic, socio-economics, symptoms, health service diagnosis and treatment, contact history, and psychological variables. The signs improvement, death, length of stay in hospital were considered as primary, and impaired pulmonary function and psychotic disorders were considered as main secondary outcomes. Notably, In the last two follow-ups, each patient attends the hospital to complete the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21). Moreover, clinical symptoms and respiratory functions are being determined in such follow-ups. Among the first 600 COVID-19 cases, a total of 490 patients with complete information (39% female; the average age of 57{+/-}15 years) were analyzed. Seven percent of these patients died. The three main leading causes of admission were: fever (77%), dry cough (73%), and fatigue (69%). The most prevalent comorbidities between COVID-19 patients were hypertension (35%), diabetes (28%), and ischemic heart disease (14%). The percentage of primary composite endpoints (PCEP), defined as death, the use of mechanical ventilation, or admission to an intensive care unit was 18%. The following comorbidities were significantly different in the positive and negative PCEP groups: acute kidney disease (p=0.008) and diabetes (p=0.026). For signs and symptoms, fatigue (p=0.020) and sore throat (p=0.001) were significantly different. This long-term prospective Cohort may support healthcare professionals in the management of resources following this pandemic.