CLINICAL FEATURES OF COVID-19 IN BANGLADESH DURING ITS INITIAL AND EPIDEMIC PHASES

Abstract

In Bangladesh, the outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) first came into light on March 08, 2020. Since then, the scientific communities of the public health sector expressed concern over the issues of heterogeneous clinical features of the disease in the country. The aim of this study is to analyze the heterogeneity of clinical characteristics of 105 COVID-19 cases in Bangladesh from March 08, 2020, to July 31, 2020. The clinical features of 105 COVID-19 cases including demographic information, symptoms, radiological findings etc. were analyzed and compared for both the initial and epidemic phase of COVID-19 outbreak in Bangladesh. Out of 105 cases, more than 20% of cases were completely asymptomatic. For symptomatic patients, the most common symptoms were respiratory stress (>60%) with low-grade fever, cough, and headache. Major X-ray findings were reported as bilateral and patchy opacities (30%). The most common co-morbidities were diabetes (20%) and heart disease (20%). More than 50% COVID19 patients recovered from the infection within three weeks. The prevalence of asymptomatic COVID-19 cases may contribute greatly to the rapid community transmission of the coronavirus in Bangladesh. The clinical outcomes of patients are assumed to be directly related to the co-morbidity and age groups along with gender. This study will significantly contribute to preventing further outbreak of COVID-19 in Bangladesh.