Epidemiological and Clinical Features of COVID-19 Confirmed Cases in Babel Governorate, Iraq

Abstract

Background: SARS-CoV-2, a newly emergent virus which is related to SARS-CoV, caused the pandemic of COVID-19 in China to the world. Objective: The aim of this study was to describe the basic epidemiological and clinical features of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Babel Governorate and to find out the comorbidities and risk factors of severity of COVID-19 infection. Materials and Methods: This is an observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study, conducted on a convenient sample of 222 participants selected from five referral district hospitals in Babel Governorate, over the period from May 12, 2020 to August 22, 2020. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data and to interview patients. Data were analyzed by using SPSS version 23. Results: The mean age ± SD was (49.92 ± 14.062 years) ranged between 10 and 89 years (median 50 years) with male predominance. The majority of the participants had comorbid conditions, including hypertension, diabetes mellitus, heart disease, and asthma. Fever constituted (85%) of symptoms followed mainly by persistent cough, loss of appetite, breathing difficulty, and diarrhea [(81%), (56.9%), (55%), and (42.3%)], respectively. In addition, 33.34% of the patients have SpO2 ≤ 92%, and two of the three patients have mild-to-moderate symptoms, and one-third considered either severe or critically ill cases of COVID-19. Conclusion: Elderly people with comorbidities are the most vulnerable to the infection of COVID-19. Smoking, obesity, traveling history, and working in healthcare facilities that contain cases of COVID-19 are risk factors leading to the occurrence of and exposure to COVID-19. People who have low level of education and are living in rural areas with big families tend to get infected mainly, and this may be due to their poor knowledge about the route of transmission and the importance of prevention measures.