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. 2020 Jul;35(4):765-770.
doi: 10.3904/kjim.2020.159. Epub 2020 May 29.

Selecting coronavirus disease 2019 patients with negligible risk of progression: early experience from non-hospital isolation facility in Korea

Pyoeng Gyun Choe  1   2 , Eun Kyo Kang  3 , Sun Young Lee  3 , Boram Oh  2 , Dahae Im  2 , Hyo Yeon Lee  2 , Hyemin Jung  3 , Chang Kyung Kang  1 , Min Sun Kim  3   4 , Wan Beom Park  1   2 , Eun Hwa Choi  2   4 , BeLong Cho  3   5 , Myoung-Don Oh  1 , Nam Joong Kim  1   2
Affiliations

Selecting coronavirus disease 2019 patients with negligible risk of progression: early experience from non-hospital isolation facility in Korea

Pyoeng Gyun Choe et al. Korean J Intern Med. 2020 Jul.

Abstract

Background/aims: As the novel coronavirus (coronavirus disease 2019 [COVID-19]) outbreak progresses rapidly, staying home is recommended for suspected patients; however, the safety of this recommendation is uncertain. In Korea, non-hospital facilities called "living and treatment centers (LTCs)" have been established since 5 March 2020. The LTCs provided a unique opportunity to evaluate the safety of selection criteria for low-risk groups.

Methods: Between 5 March and 9 April 2020, patients with COVID-19 who met the following criteria were admitted to the LTC; alert, age below 65 years old, no underlying disease or well-controlled underlying disease, body temperature below 38.0°C, whether taking antipyretics or not, and no dyspnea. Patients were closely observed by doctors or nurses' interviews twice a day and transferred to hospitals when symptoms worsened.

Results: A total of 113 patients were admitted to the LTC; 52.2% were female, with a median age of 25 years (interquartile range, 21.5 to 39.5). Of 113 patients, 54 (47.8%) were asymptomatic at diagnosis, and 15 (13.3%) had no symptoms until they were released from isolation. During the follow-up period, two (1.8%) patients were transferred to a hospital but did not progress to severe status during hospitalization.

Conclusion: The risk of progression was negligible in COVID-19 patients who met the admission criteria for LTC at the time of diagnosis. LTCs could be a safe alternative considering shortage of hospital beds.

Keywords: COVID-19; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2.

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Conflict of interest statement

No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Clinical course and outcome of coronavirus disease 2019 patients observed at the living and treatment center (LTC) operated by Seoul National University Hospital between 5 March 2020 and 9 April 2020. aOn 9 April 2020, 12 patients were transferred to another LTC due to center closure. The median isolation period of patients at the time of transfer was 35 days.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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