The DOI matches its Crossref record; 172 of the 172 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
The prevalence of symptoms in 24,410 adults infected by the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19): A systematic review and meta-analysis of 148 studies from 9 countries
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: To limit the spread of SARS-CoV-2, an evidence-based understanding of the symptoms is critical to inform guidelines for quarantining and testing. The most common features are purported to be fever and a new persistent cough, although the global prevalence of these symptoms remains unclear. The aim of this systematic review is to determine the prevalence of symptoms associated with COVID-19 worldwide. METHODS: We searched PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, AMED, medRxiv and bioRxiv on 5th April 2020 for studies of adults (>16 years) with laboratory test confirmed COVID-19. No language or publication status restrictions were applied. Data were independently extracted by two review authors into standardised forms. All datapoints were independently checked by three other review authors. A random-effects model for pooling of binomial data was applied to estimate the prevalence of symptoms, subgrouping estimates by country. I2 was used to assess inter-study heterogeneity. RESULTS: Of 851 unique citations, 148 articles were included which comprised 24,410 adults with confirmed COVID-19 from 9 countries. The most prevalent symptoms were fever (78% [95% CI 75%-81%]; 138 studies, 21,701 patients; I2 94%), a cough (57% [95% CI 54%-60%]; 138 studies, 21,682 patients; I2 94%) and fatigue (31% [95% CI 27%-35%]; 78 studies, 13,385 patients; I2 95%). Overall, 19% of hospitalised patients required non-invasive ventilation (44 studies, 6,513 patients), 17% required intensive care (33 studies, 7504 patients), 9% required invasive ventilation (45 studies, 6933 patients) and 2% required extra-corporeal membrane oxygenation (12 studies, 1,486 patients). The mortality rate was 7% (73 studies, 10,402 patients). CONCLUSIONS: We confirm that fever and cough are the most prevalent symptoms of adults infected by SARS-CoV-2. However, there is a large proportion of infected adults which symptoms-alone do not identify.
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Metadata
- Authors
- Grant, M. C., Geoghegan, L., Arbyn, M., Mohammed, Z., McGuinness, L., Clarke, E. L., & Wade, R. G.
- Venue
- PLOS ONE
- Publisher
- Public Library of Science (PLoS)
- Published
- 2020-06-23
- Volume
- 15
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- e0234765
- ISSN
- 1932-6203 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W3033306974
- Cited by
- 649
- References
- 172
- FWCI
- 8.12
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
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- Grant, M. C., Geoghegan, L., Arbyn, M., Mohammed, Z., McGuinness, L., Clarke, E. L., & Wade, R. G. (2020). The prevalence of symptoms in 24,410 adults infected by the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19): A systematic review and meta-analysis of 148 studies from 9 countries. PLOS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0234765
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