| Objective To analyze the epidemiology, clinical characteristics and laboratory testing parameters of novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) patients, and provide evidence for comprehensive summary of clinical characteristics of COVID-19 and proper evaluation of patient’s prognosis. Methods From January 20th to February 29th, 2020, a total of 65 patients with COVID-19 admitted to our center were included in this retrospective study. The included patients were divided into 3 groups according to their clinical symptoms: mild group (n=18), common group (n=31) and severe/critical group (n=16). The epidemiology, clinical symptoms and laboratory testing parameters of all patients were analyzed. Results Among 65 COVID-19 patients, there were 37 men (57%) and 28 women (43%). Their age ranged 3-85 years, with a mean of (46.63±18.63) years. The average duration of symptoms before admission was (7.00±5.02) days and the length of hospital stay was (17.07±10.51) days. There were statistical differences in age among 3 groups and between every 2 groups (P＜0.05). That is the older the patients were, the more severe the disease was. Severe/critical ill patients had more comorbidities of underlying diseases than mild and common patients. The clinical symptoms of COVID-19 patients were mainly fever (75%), cough (57%), myalgia or fatigue (43%). Other symptoms included expectoration, headache, fatigue, myalgia, shortness of breath, diarrhea, etc. Among them, 24 (37%) patients had a history of Wuhan exposure and 19 (29%) patients had a familial cluster of infection. Laboratory testing results showed that absolute count of white blood cells and lymphocytes was decreased in all 3 groups of COVID-19 patients; the levels of D-dimer, CRP, IL-6, and ESR were increased. Among the severe/critical ill patients, 8 (50%) cases had a decrease in absolute number of lymphocytes, and 9 (9/14, 64%) cases had an increased level of D-dimer. In addition, CRP, IL-6, procalcitonin and ESR were significantly increased in severe/critical ill patients. The length of hospital stay was negatively correlated with the absolute number of lymphocytes in COVID-19 patients. Conclusions The clinical characteristics of COVID-19 are complicated and the main symptoms include fever, cough, myalgia or fatigue. Compared with mild and common patients, severe/critical ill patients exhibit significant lymphopenia and increased levels of inflammation-related indices. The dysregulation of the immune system may affect the progression, recovery and outcome of COVID-19 patients. |