Clinical Features Related to Severity and Mortality among COVID-19 Patients in a Pre-Vaccine Period in Luanda, Angola

Abstract

Background: Infection due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is associated with clinical features of diverse severity. Few studies investigated the severity and mortality predictors of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Africa. Herein, we investigated the clinical features of severity and mortality among COVID-19 patients in Luanda, Angola. Methods: This multicenter cohort study involved 101 COVID-19 patients, between December 2020 and April 2021, with clinical and laboratory data collected. Analysis was done using independent-sample T-tests and Chi-square tests. The results were deemed significant when p < 0.05. Results: The mean age of patients was 51 years (ranging from 18 to 80 years) and 60.4% were male. Fever (46%), cough (47%), gastrointestinal symptoms (26.7%), and asthenia (26.7%), were the most common symptoms. About 64.4% of the patients presented coexistent disorders, including hypertension (42%), diabetes (17%), and chronic renal diseases (6%). About 23% were non-severe, 77% were severe, and 10% died during hospitalization. Variations in the concentration of neutrophil, urea, creatinine, c-reactive protein, sodium, creatine kinase, and chloride were independently associated with severity and/or mortality (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Several factors contributed to the severity and mortality among COVID-19 patients in Angola. Further studies related to clinical features should be carried out to help clinical decision-making and follow-up of COVID-19 patients in Angola.

Seroprevalence and risk factors of STIs among rejected blood donors at the National Blood Transfusion Service in Angola

“…Previous studies have documented higher rates of STIs and other communicable diseases in Luanda, partly due to the high concentration of risk groups such as sex workers and injecting drug users. [28][29][30][31][32][33] Likewise, studies carried out in Ethiopia and Pakistan also showed that the majority of blood donation candidates with positive serology came from urbanized regions. [34,35] Although not statistically signi cant (p > 0.05), more than 95% of STI and 100% of multiple infections were observed in unmarried subjects, indicating that this group may serve as a potential source of STI dissemination (Table 1).…”

Insights into SARS‐CoV‐2 in Angola during the COVID‐19 peak: Molecular epidemiology and genome surveillance

“…However, Africa accounted for only 12.8 M cases and 259,000 reported deaths 1 . These reports were likely vastly underestimated as significant excess mortalities were reported throughout Africa 2,3 . A high estimated incidence of asymptomatic infections and limited testing in many regions 4 support the notion that many case numbers remain undocumented 5 .…”

COVID-19: Current Status and Future Prospects

“…Our knowledge has expanded on the pathogenesis and treatment of COVID-19 and experience gained within different countries, and this is reflected in the enormous number of scientific papers generated, including those in this Special Issue. There have been 24 papers published upon peer review acceptance in this Special Issue, including 17 research papers [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ], 2 review papers [ 20 , 21 ], 1 opinion piece [ 22 ], 1 commentary [ 23 ], and 3 systematic reviews [ 24 , 25 , 26 ]. Each paper in this Special Issue contributes to our understanding of COVID-19.…”

“…Fever (46%), cough (47%), gastrointestinal symptoms (26.7%), and asthenia (26.7%) were the most common symptoms. About 64.4% of the patients presented coexistent disorders, including hypertension (42%), diabetes (17%), and chronic renal diseases (6%) [ 4 ]. The third study assessed the characteristics, practices, and associated factors of self-medication (SM) by the public during the COVID-19 pandemic in Sargodha, Pakistan.…”