Gastrointestinal manifestations in patients with coronavirus disease?2019 (COVID?19): Impact on clinical outcomes

Elham Tabesh, Maryam Soheilipour, Ramin Sami, Marjan Mansourian, Faezeh Tabesh, Forogh Soltaninejad, Mehrnegar Dehghan, Niloofar Nikgoftar, Ali Gharavinia, Khojasteh Ghasemi, Peyman Adibi

Abstract


Background: In this study, we summarized the data on gastrointestinal (GI) involvement and the potential association with clinical outcomes among the patients admitted to Khorshid Hospital. Materials and Methods: We investigated 1113 inpatients (?18 years old) diagnosed with coronavirus disease?2019 (COVID?19) from March to June 2020 in Khorshid Hospital. We collected demographic details, clinical information, vital signs, laboratory data, treatment type, and clinical outcomes from patients’ medical records. The data of patients with GI symptoms were compared with those without GI symptoms. Results: A total of 1113 patients were recruited (male = 648). GI symptoms were observed in 612 (56.8%) patients (male = 329), the most common of which were
nausea 387 (34.7%), followed by diarrhea 286 (25.7%), vomiting 260 (23.4%), and abdominal pain 168 (15.0%). The most prominent
non?GI symptoms were cough 796 (71.5%), fever 792 (71.2%), shortness of breath 653 (58.7%), and body pain 591 (53.1%). The
number of patients who were discharged, died, and were admitted to intensive care unit was significantly different in groups on the basis of GI and non?GI symptoms (P = 0.002, 0.009, 0.003). Conclusion: While COVID?19 was predominantly diagnosed in males, GI symptoms were more commonly reported by females. The results indicated that GI symptoms in COVID?19 patients are common, and the symptoms are not correlated with the severity of the disease. Moreover, the presence of GI symptoms was positively related to milder disease. Among COVID?19 positive patients, the clinical outcomes of the GI group were promising,
compared to those of non?GI group.


Keywords


Coronavirus, coronavirus disease?2019, gastrointestinal manifestations, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus?2

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