Cited by 587COVID-19 Clinical Research StudiesLong-Term Effects of COVID-19Dermatological and COVID-19 studies

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 15 of the 15 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Digestive Symptoms in COVID-19 Patients With Mild Disease Severity: Clinical Presentation, Stool Viral RNA Testing, and Outcomes

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Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) most commonly presents with respiratory symptoms, including cough, shortness of breath, and sore throat. However, digestive symptoms also occur in patients with COVID-19 and are often described in outpatients with less severe disease. In this study, we sought to describe the clinical characteristics of COVID-19 patients with digestive symptoms and mild disease severity. METHODS: We identified COVID-19 patients with mild disease and one or more digestive symptoms (diarrhea, nausea, and vomiting), with or without respiratory symptoms, and compared them with a group presenting solely with respiratory symptoms. We followed up patients clinically until they tested negative for COVID-19 on at least 2 sequential respiratory tract specimens collected ≥24 hours apart. We then compared the clinical features between those with digestive symptoms and those with respiratory symptoms. RESULTS: There were 206 patients with low severity COVID-19, including 48 presenting with a digestive symptom alone, 69 with both digestive and respiratory symptoms, and 89 with respiratory symptoms alone. Between the 2 groups with digestive symptoms, 67 presented with diarrhea, of whom 19.4% experienced diarrhea as the first symptom in their illness course. The diarrhea lasted from 1 to 14 days, with an average duration of 5.4 ± 3.1 days and a frequency of 4.3 ± 2.2 bowel movements per day. Concurrent fever was found in 62.4% of patients with a digestive symptom. Patients with digestive symptoms presented for care later than those with respiratory symptoms (16.0 ± 7.7 vs 11.6 ± 5.1 days, P < 0.001). Nevertheless, patients with digestive symptoms had a longer duration between symptom onset and viral clearance ( P < 0.001) and were more likely to be fecal virus positive (73.3% vs 14.3%, P = 0.033) than those with respiratory symptoms. DISCUSSION: We describe a unique subgroup of COVID-19 patients with mild disease severity marked by the presence of digestive symptoms. These patients are more likely to test positive for viral RNA in stool, to have a longer delay before viral clearance, and to experience delayed diagnosis compared with patients with only respiratory symptoms.

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Crossref · 10.14309/ajg.0000000000000664

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Metadata

Authors
Han, C., Duan, C., Zhang, S., Spiegel, B., Shi, H., Wang, W., Zhang, L., Lin, R., Liu, J., Ding, Z., & Hou, X.
Affiliations
  • Wuhan Union Hospital (CN)
  • Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (US)
Corresponding author
Hou, Xiaohua
Venue
American Journal of Gastroenterology
Published
2020-04-15
Volume
115
Issue
6
Pages
916-923
ISSN
  • 0002-9270 (ISSN-L)
  • 1572-0241
OpenAlex
W3016330801
Cited by
587
References
15
Citations by year
2026: 7 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 36 · 2023: 51 · 2022: 119 · 2021: 181 · 2020: 186
FWCI
17.59
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • The American Journal of Gastroenterology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › COVID-19 Clinical Research Studies
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Clinical Neurology › Long-Term Effects of COVID-19
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Dermatology › Dermatological and COVID-19 studies
Keywords
COVID-19 pandemic, gastrointestinal symptoms, diarrhea, viral clearance, delayed diagnosis, nausea and vomiting, clinical features
MeSH terms
Betacoronavirus, COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 Testing, China, Diarrhea, Digestive System Diseases, Feces, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Pneumonia, Viral, RNA, Viral, Severity of Illness Index, Outcome Assessment, Health Care, Coronavirus Infections, Clinical Laboratory Techniques, Pandemics, Symptom Assessment

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