A Meta-Analysis of 67 Studies with Presenting Symptoms and Laboratory Tests of COVID-19 Patients
Characteristics of Various Studies Included in the Meta-Analysis
Continent or Country
Patient Character
Population
Pediatric (9 studies)
Pregnant (2 studies)
Adult (59 studies)
Non-hospitilized
Both
Hospitilized
France (2 studies)
Italy (3 studies)
Spain (1 study)
Australia (1 study)
Singapore (1 study)
Germany (1 study)
USA (3 studies)
India (1 study)
Iran (1 study)
Malaysia (1 study)
Japan (1 study)
Bolivia (1 study)
Korea (2 studies)
Europe (3 studies)
China (46 studies)
Number of Patients Included
Varied from 4 to 1099 patients
Mean or Median Age of Patients
Varied from 3 to 68.9 years
Pooled Prevalence of Symptoms and Laboratory Investigations in Adult Population
General Symptoms
Comorbidities
ENT Symptoms
Laboratory Invesitgations
Rhinorrhea (13%, 20 studies)
Hearing loss (3%, 3 studies)
Vertigo (16%, 6 studies)
Sore throat (18%, 35 studies)
Nasal obstruction (26%, 12 studies)
Taste (31%, 11 studies)
Anosmia (38%, 12 studies)
Cough (53%, 51 studies)
Dyspnea (20%, 33 studies)
Headache (19%, 33 studies)
Fatigue (31%, 43 studies)
Nausea and vomiting (8%, 21 studies)
Fever (69%, 51 studies)
Diarrhea (9%, 35 studies)
Diabetes (7%, 26 studies)
ARDS (3%, 6 studies)
Hypertension (18%, 29 studies)
Elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (49%, 7 studies)
Lymphopenia (41%, 20 studies)
Elevated C-reactive protein (56%, 27 studies)
Lympocytosis (33%, 5 studies)
Raised D-dimer levels (25%, 18 studies)
Deranged liver function test (22%, 13 studies)
Leukopenia (22%, 22 studies)
Deranged renal function test (22%, 14 studies)
Leucocytosis (12%, 20 studies)
Abnormal lung CT findings (77%, 32 studies)
Overall prevalence of fatality (20%, 9 studies) *skewed result as one study did an analysis of deceased patients only
Comparison of Symptoms in Hospitalized and Non-Hospitalized Adult Patients
Generalized symptoms (fever, fatigue, nausea/vomiting, dyspnea, and diarrhea) are more common among hospitalized patients
ENT symptoms (cough and anosmia) are more common among hospitalized patients
These symptoms (above) may predict severe disease
Pooled Prevalence of Symptoms and Laboratory Investigations in Pediatric Patient
General Symptoms
Dyspnea (4%, 3 studies)
Fatigue (9%, 2 studies)
Fever (44%, 9 studies)
Diarrhea (12%, 4 studies)
ENT Symptoms
Sore throat (8%, 4 studies)
Cough (33%, 7 studies)
Laboratory Invesitgations
Elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate (15%, 3 studies)
Lymphopenia (13%, 4 studies)
Elevated C-reactive protein (7%, 5 studies)
Lympocytosis (22%, 3 studies)
Raised D-dimer levels (17%, 2 studies)
Deranged liver function test (13%, 5 studies)
Leukopenia (10%, 4 studies)
Leucocytosis (11%, 2 studies)
Abnormal lung CT findings (48%, 8 studies)