ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), an infectious disease caused by a new coronavirus called SARS-CoV-02, causes mild to moderate respiratory illness, and patients with benign disease conditions recover without requiring special treatment. The best way to prevent and slow down transmission is to be well-informed about the COVID-19 virus, the disease, its causes, and how it spreads;hence a qualitative research tool using focus group discussion was carried out with the following objective. To determine various symptoms, awareness, course of the disease, and health care impact on COVID-19 cases seeking health care. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional qualitative study was conducted at a tertiaryhospital attached to a medical college in April 2020. Information about the discharge of patients with a number equal to or more than 12 patient groups and their ward numbers was obtained from the office of the hospital's CEO. The collective proportion of content analysis of all the groups interacted, Word cloud, text mining, and ATLAS-TI software were used for analysis. RESULT(S): The investigator interacted with the groups until saturation in reply was achieved. The average age group was 41 years. 91% of patients ranged from middle-aged adults. There were 62% male and 38 % female patients. The patients could recollect and guess the likely source of infection. A specific inquiry was made to remind them to obtain the answers. Those aware of the confirmed case, either in the family, relatives, workplace, neighbours, or mass testing of patients in their chawl, could guess the reason for their positivity. CONCLUSION(S): Health experts should remove the fear among the patient during such pandemic situations after the patients enter isolation. The patients experienced stigma from the society they lived in. Copyright © 2023 Authors. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Objectives: 1. To study associations of severity of COVID-19 disease with clinical features and laboratory markers. 2. To develop a model to predict the need for ICU treatment. Methods: This is an analysis of clinical course in 800 consecutive patients from a dedicated COVID-19 tertiary care hospital in Pune, India (8th April to 15th June 2020). We obtained clinical and laboratory information, severity grading and progress from hospital records. We studied associations of these characteristics with need for ICU management. We developed a predictive model of need for ICU treatment among first 500 patients and tested its sensitivity and specificity in the following 300 patients. Results: Average age was 41 years, 16% were <20 years of age, 55% were male, 50% were asymptomatic and 16% had at least one comorbidity. Using MoHFW India severity guidelines, 73% patients had mild, 6% moderate and 20% severe disease. Severity was associated with higher age, symptomatic presentation, elevated neutrophil and reduced lymphocyte counts and elevated inflammatory markers. Seventy-seven patients needed ICU treatment: they were older (56 years), more symptomatic and had lower SpO2 and abnormal chest X-ray and deranged hematology and biochemistry at admission. A model trained on the first 500 patients, using above variables predicted need for ICU treatment with sensitivity 80%, specificity 88% in subsequent 300 patients;exclusion of expensive laboratory tests (Ferritin, C- Reactive Protein) did not affect accuracy. Conclusion: In the early phase of COVID- 19 pendemic, a significant proportion of hospitalized patients were young and asymptomatic. Need for ICU treatment was predicted by simple measures including higher age, symptomatic onset, low SpO2 and abnormal chest X-ray. We propose a simple model for referring patients for treatment at specialized COVID-19 hospitals. © 2021 Journal of Association of Physicians of India. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has put global health at stake by creating havoc all over the world, due to which the world, as well as health agencies, are experiencing the greatest challenges. This disease is a health emergency due to its high level of infectiousness and the non-availability of any specific treatment [1]. Objectives: To determine and compare the significance of physiological and haematological parameters in the diagnosis of COVID 19 infection and compare the association of physiological and haematological parameters among mild and severe COVID-19 patients. Methodology: The present comparative, observational study was carried out in a designated tertiary care hospital, where admission of COVID19 patients in Pune district, India. Various parameters like age, height, weight, BMI, various physiological variables, haematological parameters, and CRP levels were assessed among 202 Mild and 50 severe COVID 19 diagnosed patients on day one of the hospital's stays. Results: Pearson's correlation coefficient showed a significant correlation among physiological and haematological variables compared to both groups, especially physiological parameters like SBP and DBP. The results showed that TLC, CRP, NLR, PLR, among COVID 19 patients cans work as important biomarkers to understand the disease prognosis. Conclusion: Study of physiological and haematological parameters and their interrelation will help in understanding the impact of COVID 19 infection on the reactive inflammatory responses and help in understanding the prognosis of the disease among mild and severe patients.
ABSTRACT
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has put global health at stake by creating havoc all over the world, due to which the world, as well as health agencies, are experiencing the greatest challenges of all times. This disease is a health emergency due to its high level of infectiousness and due to the non-availability of any specific treatment. COVID 19 is a health emergency due to its high infectiousness, as currently, there is no treatment available Objectives: To determine the significance of physiological and haematological parameters in the diagnosis of COVID 19 infection and compare these parameters according to comorbid conditions during the disease progression among mild COVID 19 patients. Methodology: This retrospective, observational study was carried out in a designated tertiary care hospital to address COVID19 patients in the Pune district. Various parameters like age, height, weight, BMI, various physiological variables, haematological parameters, and CRP levels were assessed among 202 COVID 19 diagnosed patients on day one and on day 10 of the hospital stay. Results: Out of the total study participants, 112 were male, and 90 were females with an average age of (43.43 +/- 15.07) and (51.8 +/- 16.35) respectively. Conclusion: Study of physiological and haematological parameters and their interrelation will help in understanding the impact of COVID 19 infection on the reactive inflammatory responses and will help in understanding the prognosis of the disease.