Clinical and imaging features of patients with COVID-19 in a double-center cohort study

Abstract

Introduction: There is extensive published data on coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, information on the effective factors that improve the pulmonary involvement of COVID-19 patients, and long-term clinical and imaging follow-up of these patients is limited.

Methodology: This is a prospective cohort study on patients with COVID-19 who were hospitalized in two major academic hospitals in Yazd, Iran. The correlation between the baseline demographic and clinical/para-clinical data with the imaging resolution status at day 60 was assessed.

Results: 122 patients, including 65 males, with an average age of 53.43 years participated in this study. Age, gender, baseline oxygen saturation (O₂Sat), and the percentage of lung involvement were the main prognostic factors. Our results suggest that with every year increase in age, the probability of complete imaging resolution decreases by 6.4%. In addition, women are 2.07 times more likely to recover completely. Moreover, each percent increase of baseline O₂Sat makes the patients 15.4% more likely to fully recover. As the patients’ shortness of breath increases, the probability of recovery decreases by 9.8%.;56.7% of patients who did not recover after 60 days had persistent shortness of breath, while only 21% of those who recovered had symptoms of dyspnea after day 60.

Conclusions: Age, gender, baseline O₂Sat, percentage of lung involvement, and shortness of breath were identified as the main risk factors in the recovery of patients with COVID-19. Long-term follow-up of patients with COVID-19, especially patients with high-risk factors, is necessary.