Main symptoms in patients presenting in the COVID-19 period

Background: The first case of a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infection was detected in Wuhan, fever and respiratory symptoms have been frequently reported in patients infected with this virus.

Aim: It was aimed to compare the symptoms of patients with COVID-19 positivity and patients without COVID-19 positivity hospitalized with suspicion of COVID-19.

Methods: Patients presenting to the Sakarya University Training and Research Hospital with suspicion of COVID-19 were included in the study. Samples were obtained from the patients and PCR tests were performed; the patients were grouped as COVID-19 positive and COVID-19 negative; these two groups were questioned for 15 symptoms and the results were compared.

Results: A total of 297 patients with suspicion of COVID-19 were included in the study. COVID-19 was positive in 143 patients and negative in 154 patients. The most common symptoms in the COVID-19 positive group were: cough (56.6%), weakness (56.6%), taste disorder (35.7%), myalgia (34.3%), and fever (33.6%); and in the COVID-19 negative group: cough (63%), weakness (45.5%), dyspnea (29.9%), headache (27.3%) and fever (24.7%). When these two groups were compared, taste disorder, smell disorder and diarrhea were significantly higher in the COVID-19 positive group (p = <0,00001, p = 0,00001 and p = 0,02).

Conclusion: Our study showed that taste and smell disorders and diarrhea were important markers in COVID-19 infection.

Keywords: COVID-19; diarrhea; smell disorder; symptom; taste disorder.