Asymptomatic Carriers of Coronavirus Disease 2019 Among Healthcare Workers in Isfahan, Iran

• DOI: 10.2217/fvl-2020-0224
• Publication Date: 2021-01-28T09:58:58Z
• Authors: Hamed Fakhim; Elahe Nasri; Shima Aboutalebian; Sahar Gholipour; Mahnaz Nikaeen; Afsane Vaezi; Somayeh Mousavi; Sama Faramarzi; Armin Farhang; Shaghayegh Haghjo...; Mehrdad Salahi; Ali Darakhshandeh; Kazem Ahmadikia; Hossein Mirhendi
• Keywords: 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Short Communication; 3. Good health

Aim: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) among healthcare workers (HCWs) in Isfahan, Iran. Materials & methods: HCWs in COVID-19 wards of three referral COVID-19 hospitals in Isfahan were screened and tested for COVID-19 infection. Results: In total, 102 HCWs were screened whose median age was 43 years old. Moreover, 21 (20.5%) of them had a history of suspected infection with SARS-CoV2, mostly (66.6%) without any symptoms while six (28.5%) of them suffered from relatively mild diseases and one (4.7%) was diagnosed with pulmonary embolism. Conclusion: It was found that HCWs were prone to be asymptomatic carriers while their computed tomography images were normal. Therefore, it is recommended that reverse-transcriptase real-time-PCR be essential for the diagnosis of infections.