Characteristics of Ocular Findings of Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Hubei Province, China.
JAMA Ophthalmol
; 138(5): 575-578, 2020 May 01.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-20527
ABSTRACT
IMPORTANCE While the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has resulted in more than 100â¯000 infected individuals in China and worldwide, there are few reports on the association of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) with ocular abnormalities. Understanding ocular manifestations of patients with COVID-19 by ophthalmologists and others may facilitate the diagnosis and prevention of transmission of the disease. OBJECTIVE:
To investigate ocular manifestations and viral prevalence in the conjunctiva of patients with COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, ANDPARTICIPANTS:
In this case series, patients with COVID-19 treated from February 9 to 15, 2020, at a hospital center in Hubei province, China, were retrospectively reviewed for ocular manifestations. During the period of treatment, the ocular signs and symptoms as well as results of blood tests and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) from nasopharyngeal and conjunctival swabs for SARS-CoV-2 were noted and analyzed. MAIN OUTCOMES ANDMEASURES:
Ocular signs and symptoms as well as results of blood tests and RT-PCR for SARS-CoV-2.RESULTS:
Of the 38 included patients with clinically confirmed COVID-19, 25 (65.8%) were male, and the mean (SD) age was 65.8 (16.6) years. Among them, 28 patients (73.7%) had positive findings for COVID-19 on RT-PCR from nasopharyngeal swabs, and of these, 2 patients (5.2%) yielded positive findings for SARS-CoV-2 in their conjunctival as well as nasopharyngeal specimens. A total of 12 of 38 patients (31.6%; 95% CI, 17.5-48.7) had ocular manifestations consistent with conjunctivitis, including conjunctival hyperemia, chemosis, epiphora, or increased secretions. By univariate analysis, patients with ocular symptoms were more likely to have higher white blood cell and neutrophil counts and higher levels of procalcitonin, C-reactive protein, and lactate dehydrogenase than patients without ocular symptoms. In addition, 11 of 12 patients with ocular abnormalities (91.7%; 95% CI, 61.5-99.8) had positive results for SARS-CoV-2 on RT-PCR from nasopharyngeal swabs. Of these, 2 (16.7%) had positive results for SARS-CoV-2 on RT-PCR from both conjunctival and nasopharyngeal swabs. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this study, one-third of patients with COVID-19 had ocular abnormalities, which frequently occurred in patients with more severe COVID-19. Although there is a low prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in tears, it is possible to transmit via the eyes.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Pneumonia, Viral
/
RNA, Viral
/
Coronavirus Infections
/
Disease Transmission, Infectious
/
Conjunctiva
/
Eye Diseases
/
Betacoronavirus
Type of study:
Cohort study
/
Diagnostic study
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Aged
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Country/Region as subject:
Asia
Language:
English
Journal:
JAMA Ophthalmol
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Jamaophthalmol.2020.1291
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