Epidemiology, Clinical Characteristics, and Outcomes of a Large Cohort of COVID-19 Outpatients in Michigan

Alexandra Halalau,1,2 Fadi Odish,3 Zaid Imam,4 Aryana Sharrak,2 Evan Brickner,2 Paul Bumki Lee,2 Adam Foglesong,1 Adrian Michel,1 Inayat Gill,1 Lihua Qu,2,5 Amr E Abbas,2,6 Christopher F Carpenter1,2,7 1Internal Medicine Department, Beaumont Health, Royal Oak, MI, USA; 2Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, Rochester, MI, USA; 3Section of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Wright State University, Dayton, OH, USA; 4Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Beaumont Health, Royal Oak, MI, USA; 5Outcome Research Department, Research Institute Beaumont Health, Royal Oak, MI, USA; 6Cardiovascular Department, Beaumont Health, Royal Oak, MI, USA; 7Infectious Disease Section, Beaumont Health, Royal Oak, MI, USACorrespondence: Alexandra HalalauWilliam Beaumont Hospital, 3601 W 13 Mile Road, Royal Oak, MI, 48073, USATel +1 248 551-3481Email Alexandra.Halalau@beaumont.orgBackground: Most outpatients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) do not initially demonstrate severe features requiring hospitalization. Understanding this population’s epidemiological and clinical characteristics to allow outcome anticipation is crucial in healthcare resource allocation.Methods: Retrospective, multicenter (8 hospitals) study reporting on 821 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 by real-time reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction assay of nasopharyngeal swabs and discharged home to self-isolate after evaluation in emergency departments (EDs) within Beaumont Health System in March, 2020. Outcomes were collected through April 14, 2020, with a minimum of 12 day follow-up and included subsequent ED visit, admission status, and mortality.Results: Of the 821 patients, mean age was 49.3 years (SD 15.7), 46.8% were male and 55.1% were African-American. Cough was the most frequent symptom in 78.2% of patients with a median duration of 3 days (IQR 2– 7), and other symptoms includ