Clinical characteristics of older patients: The experience of a geriatric short-stay unit dedicated to patients with COVID-19 in France

We read with great interest the article by Liu et al1 published recently in The Journal of Infection. We would like to share our experience as a geriatric short-stay unit exclusively for aged patients infected with coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19). COVID-19 infection was documented for the first time in January 2020 in France. From that date onwards, the infection spread rapidly throughout the country, mainly in the east and north. Our hospital is located in the north of France, in an area with a population of 400,000 inhabitants. In March 2020, we decided to open a short-stay geriatric unit for elderly polymorbid patients suspected of COVID-19 infection. In the first week, we received 22 patients, 17 of whom were infected with SARS-CoV-2 (confirmed by RT-PCR). Nine were female and median age was 86.5 years (range: 68.6- 97.1). The main clinical and biological characteristics are detailed in Table 1, and compared with the results published by Liu et al.1 In our series, fever was the most common symptom (observed at home or at admission). Cough, delirium, dyspnea, and asthenia were the other most commonly observed signs.