Dynamic changes of lymphocytes and the disease progression in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 in Xi'an

Objective: To analyze the clinical characteristics of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Xi'an so as to investigate the relationship between the dynamic changes of lymphocytes and the disease progression Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 15 patients with COVID-19 in The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from January 22 to February 16, 2020 Results: Among the 15 patients with COVID-19, 8 were males and 7 were females, aged from 22 to 89 years There were 12 ordinary cases (80%), 1 severe case (6 67%), and 2 critical cases(13 33%) There were 6 groups of family clusters Most of the patients (14/15, 93 3%) had fever of different degrees The average time from illness onset to admission was 2 80±1 66 days, and the average time from illness onset to diagnosis was 2 83±2 29 days The main accompanying symptoms were dry cough (8/15, 53 33%) and shortness of breath (4/15, 26 67%) Nine patients (60%) who had low lymphocyte counts at admission, including of all of the critically ill patients (1 severe case and 2 critical cases) and 6 (6/12, 50%) ordinary patients Lymphocyte counts in the ordinary cases increased gradually, but fluctuated in the severely ill patients They were always at low level, or even decreased overall in critical cases Conclusion: In Xi'an City, COVID-19 mostly occurred in family clusters Lymphocyte counts were reduced in most patients, especially in critically ill (severe and critical) ones The lymphocyte count at admission and its kinetics during therapy may be an important predictor for the severity and prognosis of the disease