Review of Burden, Clinical Definitions, and Management of COVID-19 Cases.

Review of Burden, Clinical Definitions, and Management of COVID-19 Cases. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2020 Jul 01;: Authors: McArthur L, Sakthivel D, Ataide R, Chan F, Richards JS, Narh CA Abstract Our understanding of SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), its clinical manifestations, and treatment options continues to evolve at an unparalleled pace. This review sought to summarize the key literature regarding transmission, case definitions, clinical management, and the burden of COVID-19. Our review of the literature showed that SARS-CoV-2 was mainly transmitted via inhalation of respiratory droplets containing the virus and had a mean incubation period of 4-6 days. The commonly reported symptoms were fever (75.3% ± 18.7%) and cough (62.6% ± 17.7%) across the spectrum of clinical disease-mild, moderate, severe, and critical, but with the disease phenotype varying with severity. Categorization of these cases for home care or hospital management needs to be defined, with risk stratification accounting for the age of the patient and the presence of underlying comorbidities. The case definitions varied among countries, which could have contributed to the differences in the case fatality rates among affected countries. The severity and risk of death due to COVID-19 was associated with age and underlying comorbidities. Asymptomatic cases, which constitute which constitute 40-80% of COVID-19 cases are a consid...
Source: The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene - Category: Tropical Medicine Authors: Tags: Am J Trop Med Hyg Source Type: research