Evaluation of Disease-related Characteristics in COVID-19 Infected Population of Karachi, Pakistan: An Online Survey

Aims: COVID-19 pandemic brought the medical community into action, to introduce safe and effective strategies to combat the disease. Pakistan has also experienced a significant increase in COVID-positive cases. The objective of this study is to assess the disease-related characteristics and evaluate different treatment responses in patients infected with SARS-CoV-2. Data was collected from January to September 2021.

Methodology: An online survey was circulated and analyzed using SPSS and results were reported as frequency and percentages. 1000 questionnaires were distributed, of which 257 responses were received.

Results: The majority of the population 90.3% survived however, a few 9.7% deaths were reported. Fever (65.7%) and cough (53.6%) were the most frequently observed symptoms. Ninety percent (n=230) of the patients required no hospital admission. The results show that 16.3% received anti-viral treatment, mainly Remdesivir. This study will help in assessing the COVID-19 patient’s response to different treatment strategies. It will also provide an insight into the psychological impact of COVID-19.

Conclusion: This study showed encouraging data regarding the disease characteristics of COVID-19 observed in the population.