Dynamics of the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak in Poland: an epidemiological analysis of the first 2 months of the epidemic

摘要

Introduction: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an?infectious disease caused by the?novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus?2. Objectives: Our aim was to present an?epidemiological analysis of the?first 2 months (March and April 2020) of the?COVID-19 epidemic in Poland. Patients and methods: This analysis was based on data from epidemiological reports collected between March 4 and April 30, 2020, by the?Chief Sanitary Inspectorate. These epidemiological reports include data on sociodemographic characteristics of new laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases, the?number of COVID-19–related deaths, the?number of recovered COVID-19 patients as well as the?number of laboratory tests performed. Results: From March 4 to April 30, 2020, a?total of 12?877 laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases were registered in Poland (55.7% women; mean [SD] age, 50.6 [20.5] years). The?RT-PCR test was performed in 338?000 patients. The?notification rate for COVID-19 was 33.2 per 100?000 inhabitants. One-third of laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 cases were among quarantined persons, 26.1% were related to the?healthcare system (hospital or clinic), and 13.3% occurred in nursing homes. As of April 30, 2020, 644 COVID-19–related deaths were registered in Poland (46.5% women). The?death rate for the?whole country was 1.7 per 100?000 inhabitants. Conclusions: Our data showed higher notification rate for COVID-19 among women than men, but men were more likely to die from COVID-19. The?notification rate for COVID-19 in Poland among women aged 45 to 54 years was 2-fold higher than among men.