The clinical data from 19 critically ill patients with coronavirus disease 2019: a single-centered, retrospective, observational study

Background The objectives of this study were to analyze the clinical features of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and evaluate the diagnosis and treatment. Methods A retrospective analysis of the clinical manifestation and auxiliary examination of 19 patients with COVID-19 from the Liyuan Hospital intensive care unit (ICU) between January 16, 2020 and February 20, 2020 was undertaken. Results There were 11 male and 8 female cases among the patients. The median (range) age was 73 (38-91) years. Of these patients, 8 (42.1%) had died and the median duration from ICU admission to death was 2 (interquartile range (IQR): 1-10.75) days. Seven of these 8 patients had underlying diseases. The auxiliary examination showed fever (68.4%), dry cough (15.8%), dyspnea (10.5%), and diarrhea (5.3%). All 19 cases showed ground-glass changes on chest computed tomography. Serum hypersensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and serum amylase A (SAA) were clearly increased in all of the cases. Among the 19 cases, there were 16 (84.2%) cases in which the total number of lymphocytes decreased, 12 cases (63%) had reduced liver function, and 11 cases (58%) had deviant results for fibrinogen (FIB) and D-dimer, in particular, the D-dimer level was significantly higher in the non-survivors compared with the survivors. Conclusion There were more men than women among critically ill patients. All of the cases showed ground-glass changes on chest computed tomography and the vast majority of patients displayed fever and dry cough. The clinical laboratory indices change significantly, especially the D-dimer level among non-survivors.

Automated summary

This study analyzed the clinical features and diagnostic methods of 19 patients with COVID-19. The findings showed that there were more male than female critically ill patients, and they often had symptoms such as fever and dry cough. Chest computed tomography revealed ground-glass changes in all cases. Significant changes were observed in clinical laboratory indices, especially in the D-dimer level of non-survivors.