BACKGROUND: The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a large threat to public health in China, with high contagious capacity and varied mortality. This study aimed to investigate the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of older patients with COVID-19 outside Wuhan. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed, with collecting data from medical records of confirmed COVID-19 patients in Zhejiang province from 17 January to 12 February 2020. Epidemiological, clinical, and treatment data were analyzed between older (&#8805; 60 years) and younger (< 60 years) patients. RESULTS: A total of 788 patients with confirmed COVID-19 were selected; 136 were older patients with corresponding mean age of 68.28â ±â 7.31 years. There was a significantly higher frequency of women in older patient group compared with younger patients (57.35% vs 46.47%, Pâ =â .021). The presence of coexisting medical conditions was significantly higher in older patients compared with younger patients (55.15% vs 21.93%, Pâ <â .001), including the rate of hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Significantly higher rates of severe clinical type (older vs younger groups: 16.18% vs 5.98%, Pâ <â .001), critical clinical type (8.82% vs 0.77%, Pâ <â .001), shortness of breath (12.50% vs 3.07%, Pâ <â .001), and temperature of > 39.0°C (13.97% vs 7.21%, Pâ =â .010) were observed in older patients compared with younger patients. Finally, higher rates of intensive care unit admission (9.56% vs 1.38%, Pâ <â .001) and methylprednisolone application (28.68% vs 9.36%, Pâ <â .001) were also identified in older patients compared with younger ones. CONCLUSIONS: The specific epidemiological and clinical features of older COVID-19 patients included significantly higher female sex, body temperature, comorbidities, and rate of severe and critical type disease.
Analysis of Epidemiological and Clinical Features in Older Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Outside Wuhan