Abstract: Objective To investigate clinical characteristics and their correlation with disease severity in patients with novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP), and provide basis for rapid assessment of the disease and prediction of prognosis. Methods Data of NCP patients in Nanyang Central Hospital were collected. Patients were divided into severe group and non-severe group according to their clinical classification.The basic clinical data, laboratory and imaging examination results were compared between the two groups. Results In the 50 patients, there were 18 males (36%) and 32 females (64%), and the average age was (48.2±15.3) years. Patients included 39 non-severe cases (78%) and 11 severe cases (22%). Forty-one cases (82%) have been to Wuhan or have been in close contact with the people returning from Wuhan. Fever (98%) and fatigue (66%) were the most common clinical symptoms. Twenty-nine cases (58%) showed lymphocyte (LYM) decline, 48 cases (96%) showed multiple plaque shadows, interstitial changes or ground glass shadows in chest CT examination. The incidence of asthma, white blood count (WBC), neutrophils (NEU)%, procalcitonin (PCT), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and aspartate transaminase(AST) levels were higher in severe group than those in non-severe group, but OI and LYM% were lower in severe group than those of non-severe group (P＜0.05 or P＜0.01). WBC, NEU% and PCT were positively correlated with the disease severity, while LYM% was negatively correlated with the disease severity (P＜0.05). Compared with the non-severe group, NEU% was higher and LYM% was lower in the severe group (P＜0.05). The usage rates of hormones and gamma globulin were high, and patients received more ventilator support treatment in severe group. Forty-nine cases (98%) were cured and discharged from hospital. One case died in severe group, and the fatality rate was 2%. The median hospital stay was 13(11, 16) days. Conclusion Patients with NCP generally show fever, fatigue and decreased lymphocytes. The age and complications are not related to the severity of the disease. Levels of NEU% and LYM% are likely related to the severity of the disease.

Key words: coronavirus, pneumonia, viral, critical illness, coronavirus disease 2019