Prevalence of gastro-intestinal Symptoms Among COVID-19 Patients and the Association With Disease Clinical Outcomes

Abstract

Aim: This study examined the various manifestations of COVID-19 in people's gastro-intestinal system and how gastro-intestinal involvement relates to the progression and outcome of the disease. Methodology: A questionnaire survey was used to collect data from 561 COVID-19 patients between February 6 and 6 April 2022. Laboratory data and clinical outcomes were obtained from the patients' medical records. Results: 39.9% of patients presented gastro-intestinal symptoms, mainly loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Gastro-intestinal symptoms were not linked to poorer outcomes such as mortality, ICU admission or length of hospital stays. Conclusion: gastro-intestinal symptoms were common among patients and may manifest with respiratory symptoms. We recommended clinicians to watch out for gastro-intestinal symptoms as related to COVID-19 infection.

Plain Language Summary

COVID-19 mainly affects the respiratory system. However, it has been previously reported that the disease can impact other organ systems, particularly the gastro-intestinal system. A prospective descriptive study design which involved 561 COVID-19 patients was performed to identify the various manifestations of COVID-19 in people's gastro-intestinal system and how gastro-intestinal involvement influenced the progression and outcome of the disease. Almost 40% of patients presented with gastro-intestinal symptoms, mainly loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. However, the presence of gastro-intestinal symptoms was not linked to poorer outcomes such as mortality, ICU admission, length of hospital stays and increased mechanical intubation of COVID-19 patients.

Keywords:

• clinical outcomes
• COVID-19
• COVID-19 transmission
• gastro-intestinal system
• mortality
• prevalence

Author contributions

H Al-Momani was responsible for the study design, analyzing data, preparing the figure and tables, and writing the manuscript. M Almasri and S Mashal: responsible for data collection. S Mashal and I Aolymat: responsible for study design and co-wrote the manuscript.

Acknowledgments

The thank the administrative and healthcare staff of the Prince Hamza Hospital for their cooperative efforts throughout the conduction of this study. The authors wish to thank the participants for sharing their experience and time, without which this research has not been possible.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Ethical conduct of research

This research was given ethical clearance by both Hashemite University and the Ethics Service Committee of Prince Hamza Hospital (reference no. 5/3/2020/2021). The individuals taking part in the study are respected in their right to participate on a voluntary basis or to decline to participate with no consequence arising from the decision. All participants were given an informed consent form and were also informed of their right to withdraw from the research project at any stage during the data-gathering process. The identity and personal data of the respondents is protected via use of numbers to identify participants and their data were stored in a secure location. This ensures that the respondents' identities and personal information are kept private. The researcher ensured that all aspects of the study adhered to relevant regulations and guidelines.