Clinical Features of COVID-19 in Uzbekistan

BACKGROUND: As of April 30, 2020, a total of 2,039 cases of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) were confirmed in the Republic of Uzbekistan after the first detection on March 15. Reports on symptoms of COVID-19 are non-specific and known to vary from asymptomatic, mild to severe, or fatal. This study aimed to analyze the symptomatic and clinical characteristics of study participants based on the medical records of participants hospitalized with COVID-19 in Uzbekistan. METHODS: We collected all data from medical records of COVID-19 confirmed patients in 19 hospitals from 13 regions of Uzbekistan between March 15 and April 30. We selected 1,030 patients discharged from the hospitals after COVID-19 treatment as study participants, excluding those with missing data. Further, we collected demographics, symptoms, clinical outcomes, and treatment data through medical records. RESULTS: More than half (57.6%) of confirmed cases of COVID-19 were males, and the median age was 36.0 years. The most frequent symptoms at the first inspection on hospital admission of all patients were fatigue (59.7%), dry cough (54.1%), pharyngalgia (31.6%), headache (20.6%), and anorexia (12.5%). Compared to the oldest group, the youngest group showed a lower frequency of symptoms. About half of the group aged 18–49 years reported that they came from abroad. One-fifth of patients in group 50–84 received oxygen support, while no patients in group aged 0–17 years received oxygen support. About two-thirds of the participants from intensive care unit (ICU) came from abroad, whereas 42.1% of the non-ICU group returned from other countries. Regarding symptoms, 16.9% of the patients in the ICU group were asymptomatic, while 5.8% in the non-ICU group were asymptomatic. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that the medical delivery system and resource distribution need to be implemented based on clinical characteristics by age and severity to delay and effectively respond to the spread of infections in the future. This study analyzed symptoms of COVID-19 patients across Uzbekistan, which is useful as primary data for policies on COVID-19 in Uzbekistan.