Table 3.
Differences in clinical profile of patients by age group.
| Parameter | Overall (n = 554) | Age <40 years (n = 366) | Age ≥40 years (n = 188) | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 37 (±12) | 30 (±5) | 51 (±9) | <0.001 |
| Gender (male) | 477 (86.9%) | 323 (89.2%) | 155 (82.4%) | 0.025 |
| Ethnicity | <0.001 | |||
| Chinese | 91 (16.5%) | 25 (6.8%) | 66 (35.1%) | |
| Malay | 34 (6.1%) | 19 (5.2%) | 15 (8.0%) | |
| Indian | 199 (36.0%) | 143 (39.1%) | 56 (29.8%) | |
| Bangladeshi | 175 (31.5%) | 140 (28.3%) | 35 (18.6%) | |
| Others | 55 (9.9%) | 39 (10.7%) | 16 (8.5%) | |
| Contact history | <0.001 | |||
| Imported cases | 29 (5.2%) | 16 (4.4%) | 13 (6.9%) | |
| Community cases | 100 (18.1%) | 38 (10.4%) | 62 (33.0%) | |
| Dormitory cases | 425 (76.7%) | 312 (85.2%) | 113 (60.1%) | |
| Medical comorbidities | ||||
| Prior history of hypertension | 53 (12.3%) | 6 (2.2%) | 47 (30.5%) | <0.001 |
| Prior history of hyperlipidaemia | 34 (8.1%) | 2 (0.7%) | 32 (22.2%) | <0.001 |
| Prior history of diabetes mellitus | 21 (5.1%) | 3 (1.1%) | 18 (13.1%) | <0.001 |
| Prior history of asthma | 6 (1.5%) | 4 (1.4%) | 2 (1.5%) | 0.931 |
| No previous medical conditions | 367 (90.4%) | 269 (97.5%) | 98 (75.4%) | <0.001 |
| Clinical profile | ||||
| Asymptomatic illness | 66 (11.9%) | 52 (14.2%) | 14 (7.4%) | 0.020 |
| Day of illness at presentation | 3.5 (±5.1) | 3.1 (±5.0) | 4.2 (±5.1) | 0.012 |
| Length of days with fever | 1.2 (±2.4) | 1.0 (±2.2) | 1.8 (±2.7) | <0.001 |
| Admission temperature (oC) | 37.7 (±3.9) | 37.8 (±4.8) | 37.5 (±0.8) | 0.377 |
| Systolic blood pressure (mmHg) | 130 (±17) | 127 (±16) | 135 (±19) | <0.001 |
| Diastolic blood pressure (mmHg) | 81 (±12) | 81 (±11) | 81 (±14) | 0.771 |
| Oxygen saturation (%) | 98 (±3) | 98 (±1) | 97 (±4) | 0.001 |
| Pulse rate (/min) | 94 (±19) | 96 (±19) | 92 (±18) | 0.053 |
| Respiratory rate (/min) | 19 (±7) | 19 (±6) | 20 (±6) | 0.444 |
| Laboratory investigations | ||||
| Total white cell count (×109/L) | 6.5 (±2.2) | 6.5 (±1.9) | 6.4 (±2.7) | 0.730 |
| Absolute neutrophil count (×109/L) | 4.18 (±7.9) | 4.2 (±9.6) | 4.1 (±2.7) | 0.924 |
| Absolute lymphocyte count (×109/L) | 1.90 (±2.02) | 2.0 (±2.4) | 1.7 (±0.9) | 0.014 |
| Haemoglobin (g/dL) | 14.9 (±1.6) | 15.2 (±1.5) | 14.3 (±1.7) | <0.001 |
| Platelet count (×109/L) | 228 (±60) | 231 (±59) | 221 (±62) | 0.074 |
| Haematocrit (%) | 45 (±23) | 47 (±28) | 42 (±5) | 0.023 |
| Sodium (mmol/L) | 138 (±3) | 138 (±2) | 137 (±3) | <0.001 |
| Creatinine (mmol/L) | 79 (±30) | 77 (±15) | 83 (±47) | 0.041 |
| Albumin (g/L) | 43 (±17) | 44 (±20) | 40 (±4) | 0.010 |
| AST (units/L) | 38 (±48) | 36 (±26) | 41 (±77) | 0.428 |
| ALT (units/L) | 46 (±44) | 48 (±41) | 41 (±50) | 0.067 |
| LDH (units/L) | 436 (±423) | 413 (±409) | 485 (±448) | 0.069 |
| C-reactive protein (mg/L) | 14 (±27) | 10 (±23) | 22 (±33) | <0.001 |
| Ferritin (ug/L) | 179 (±216) | 139 (±90) | 268 (±347) | <0.001 |