Characteristics and outcomes of COVID-19 patients hospitalized at a Central Hospital in Harare, 2020-2022
Introduction: In June 2021, Zimbabwe experienced a third COVID-19 wave characterized by a 3.5% case fatality rate compared to 1.5% in the first wave and 2.6% in the second wave. Sixty-eight percent of these deaths were among hospitalized patients. We investigated the characteristics and outcomes of...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
African Field Epidemiology Network
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://afenet-journal.org/characteristics-and-outcomes-of-covid-19-patients-hospitalized-at-a-central-hospital-in-harare-2020-2022/ |
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| Summary: | Introduction: In June 2021, Zimbabwe experienced a third COVID-19 wave characterized by a 3.5% case fatality rate compared to 1.5% in the first wave and 2.6% in the second wave. Sixty-eight percent of these deaths were among hospitalized patients. We investigated the characteristics and outcomes of hospitalized COVID-19 patients at a central hospital in Harare from 2020 to 2022. The findings are critical in informing strategies for managing future epidemics and public health threats in the country.
Methods: We conducted an analytic cross-sectional study using secondary data from 384 randomly sampled COVID-19 patient admission records. Participants were any COVID-19 patients hospitalized at the central hospital in Harare from March 2020 to September 2022. Demographic and clinical characteristics, vaccination status, and treatment outcome were collected using an adapted abstraction tool. Descriptive statistics, odds ratios, and confidence intervals were generated using Epi Info.
Results: Of the 384 hospitalized patients, 234 (60.9%) were females. Eighty-four of 384 (21.9%) patients were between 61-70 years. Common symptoms recorded were shortness of breath 286 (74.5%), cough 135 (35.2%), and fatigue 67 (17.5%). The top two comorbidities were hypertension, 125 (35.3%), and diabetes mellitus, 52 (13.5%). In-hospital mortality was 99/384 (25.8%). Oxygen saturation levels 80–88% on room air [AOR = 0.02; 95% CI: 0.001–0.30], 88–100% on oxygen [AOR = 0.03; 95% CI: 0.003–0.26], and 89–100% on room air [AOR = 0.004; 95% CI: 0.0002–0.05], moderate disease [AOR = 3.94; 95% CI: 3.23–4.81] and severe disease [AOR = 6.26; 95% CI: 5.46–7.18] were independently associated with in-hospital mortality among hospitalized COVID-19 patients.
Conclusion: Most hospitalizations were among females and older people. Oxygen saturation levels and disease severity impacted hospitalization outcomes. We facilitated the intensification of case-based surveillance and review of case management protocols and recommended targeted vaccinations in high-risk groups. |
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| ISSN: | 2664-2824 |