| Autor: |
Martinez-Fierro ML; Molecular Medicine Laboratory, Unidad Academica de Medicina Humana y C.S, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Diaz-Lozano M; Molecular Medicine Laboratory, Unidad Academica de Medicina Humana y C.S, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Alvarez-Zuñiga C; Molecular Medicine Laboratory, Unidad Academica de Medicina Humana y C.S, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Ramirez-Hernandez LA; Unidad Academica de Matematicas, Universidad Autonoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Araujo-Espino R; Unidad Academica de Enfermería, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Trejo-Ortiz PM; Unidad Academica de Enfermería, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Mollinedo-Montaño FE; Unidad Academica de Enfermería, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Ortiz-Castro Y; Molecular Medicine Laboratory, Unidad Academica de Medicina Humana y C.S, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Vazquez-Reyes S; Unidad Academica de Ingenieria Eléctrica, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Velasco-Elizondo P; Unidad Academica de Ingenieria Eléctrica, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Garcia-Esquivel L; Clinica Universitaria, Unidad Academica de Medicina Humana y C.S, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Araujo-Conejo A; Hospital General Zacatecas 'Luz González Cosío', Servicios de Salud de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico., Garza-Veloz I; Molecular Medicine Laboratory, Unidad Academica de Medicina Humana y C.S, Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Zacatecas 98160, Mexico. |
| Abstrakt: |
Background and Objectives : Sentinel surveillance in the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico represented a significant cost reduction and was useful in estimating the population infected with SARS-CoV-2. However, it also implied that many patients were not screened and therefore had no accurate diagnosis. In this study, we carried out a population-based SARS-CoV-2 screening in Mexico to evaluate the COVID-19-related symptoms and their weighting in predicting SARS-CoV-2 infection. We also discuss this data in the context of the operational definition of suspected cases of COVID-19 established by the Mexican Health Authority's consensus. Materials and Methods : One thousand two hundred seventy-nine subjects were included. They were screened for SARS-CoV-2 using RT-PCR. The weighting of COVID-19 symptoms in predicting SARS-CoV-2 infection was evaluated statistically. Results : Three hundred and twenty-five patients were positive for SARS-CoV-2 and 954 were negative. Fever, asthenia, dysgeusia, and oxygen saturation predicted SARS-CoV-2 infection (odds ratios ranged from 1.74 to 4.98; p < 0.05). The percentage of asymptomatic COVID-19 patients was 36% and only 38.15% met the Mexican operational definition. Cq-values for the gene N of SARS-CoV-2 were significantly higher in asymptomatic subjects than in the groups of COVID-19 patients with neurological, respiratory, and/or musculoskeletal manifestations ( p < 0.05). Conclusions : Dysgeusia, fever, and asthenia increased the odds of a positive result for COVID-19 1.74-4.98-fold among the study population. Patients with neurological, respiratory, and/or musculoskeletal manifestations had higher viral loads at COVID-19 diagnosis than those observed in asymptomatic patients. A high percentage of the participants in the study (61.85%) did not meet the operational definition for a suspected case of COVID-19 established by the Mexican Health Authority's consensus, representing a high percentage of the population that could have remained without a COVID-19 diagnosis, so becoming a potential source of virus spread. |
