Association between Upper Respiratory Tract Viral Load, Comorbidities, Disease Severity, and Outcome of Patients with SARS-CoV-2 Infection

Background: There is limited information on the association between upper respiratory tract (URT) viral loads, host factors, and disease severity in SARS-CoV-2-infected patients. Methods: We studied 1122 patients (mean age, 46 years) diagnosed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). URT viral load, measured by PCR cycle threshold, was categorized as high, moderate, or low. Results: There were 336 (29.9%) patients with comorbidities; 309 patients (27.5%) had high, 316 (28.2%) moderate, and 497 (44.3%) low viral load. In univariate analyses, compared to patients with moderate or low viral load, patients with high viral load were older, more often had comorbidities, developed Symptomatic disease (COVID-19), were intubated, and died. Patients with high viral load had longer stay in intensive care unit and longer intubation compared to patients with low viral load (P valuesâ€