Correlation of SARS-CoV-2 Viral Load in Different Population Subsets: A Study from a Tertiary Care North Indian Hospital.

Background: The correlation of SARS-CoV-2 viral load with disease severity in different population subsets is still elusive. There is a scarcity of literature regarding this aspect in Indian Population. Aim: To study retrospectively the risk factors and the role of viral load with disease severity among different age groups of North Indian population. Methods: Here we quantified the viral load of 239 positive participants and collected data retrospectively from April 2020 to May 2020 and categorised the patients as per disease severity and population subsets. Results: Asymptomatic patients were found to have higher viral load than the symptomatic patients, though the difference was not found to be statistically significant. The logistic regression analysis showed that contact with laboratory confirmed cases, SARI and ILI were independent risk factors for acquiring COVID-19 infection. Conclusion: SARS-CoV-2 viral load is not significantly associated with disease severity among different population subsets. However, there is a need to carry out more studies with a larger number of patients to validate and confirm the above findings.