Demographic, clinical, Q-PCR and viral sequencing profiles of COVID-19 patients

Objectives: The emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a major public health threat affected the healthcare facilities. Understanding epidemiological and clinical features of COVID-19 patients is important. We analysed the demographic, clinical, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR) and viral sequencing profiles of COVID-19 patients of a secondary care hospital in North India. Material and Methods: This was a retrospective, case-control study evaluating the secondary data (February 2022 to April 2023) at a COVID-19 testing laboratory of a secondary care hospital. Patients were tested by Q-PCR for COVID-19, and their demographic and clinical details were collected from the records. Chi-square test, student’s t test and logistic regression analysis were carried out as applicable. Results: Records of 1324 patients were analysed. The mean age was 39.9 years. Significant correlation found between viral load and patients’ age. The majority of the testing (62.65) was done on demand, and 37.4% as recommended by the physician. Males (55.6%) preponderated in the study with a male-to-female ratio of 1.2:1. A total of 66.5% patients were symptomatic, 33.5% were asymptomatic, and 79.4% were vaccinated. OR found to be significant for symptomatic and unvaccinated cases of COVID-19 infection. No gender wise relationship between patients and vaccination status was revealed. “Omicron other sub-lineage” was the most common lineage in sequenced samples. Conclusion: Both elderly and young patients are affected by COVID-19. Viral load increases with age. Asymptomatic patients pose a threat of spreading infection. Similar vaccination efficacy across genders was found. Omicron sublineages dominated the sequenced samples. It is important to identify viral mutations for clinical and public health strategies. More research is required for understanding the population-level spread and control of COVID-19.