clinical characteristics of fatal cases of covid-19 in tabriz, iran: an analysis of 111 patients

Introduction: the rapid worldwide spread, in addition to the morbidity and mortality associated with the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19), have raised concern throughout the world. identifying the characteristics of patients who died of covid-19 is essential to implement preventive measures. objective: we aimed at investigating these characteristics among the iranian population in tabriz. methods: in this case series, we analyzed clinical characteristics, laboratory parameters, and imaging findings of 111 patients with a reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (rt-pcr)-confirmed covid-19 diagnosis who died during hospitalization. the studied patients had been admitted to the hospital between february 2020 and may 2020. results: the median age of patients was 73 years (iqr, 62-82 years) and approximately 70% of them were male. the median oxygen saturation on admission was 88% (iqr, 80-92%) and dyspnea, cough, and fever were the most common presenting symptoms. among comorbidities, diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases were more frequently observed among patients who had a fatal outcome. while ground-glass opacity was the most commonly reported finding on chest computed tomography, 5% of the patients had no abnormal finding on imaging. chloroquine was the most frequently used medication for treatment. conclusion: our results showed that the majority of covid-19 deaths occurred in male elderly with decreased levels of oxygen saturation and elevated levels of lactate dehydrogenase and erythrocyte sedimentation rate on admission.