Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Aga Khan University, Stadium Road, P.O.Box 3500, Karachi, 74800, Pakistan.
Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan.
BMC Public Health. 2024 Sep 27;24(1):2629. doi: 10.1186/s12889-024-19958-w.
Pakistan reported 1.57 million COVID-19 cases between 2020 and 2022, based on approximately 30.6 million SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR (reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction) tests conducted. This study utilized data from one of the largest in-country testing facilities, Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) in Karachi, Pakistan, to explore gender and age-related in RT-PCR testing patterns.
We conducted a retrospective review of SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test data extracted from AKUH clinical laboratory records between February 2020 and February 2022. Gender and age distributions were examined in the context of testing patterns across the period. Multivariate regression models assessed independent associations between COVID-19 positivity and key variables.
We reviewed 470,249 RT-PCR tests, finding that most tests were in those aged 21-40 years (48.1%). Overall, COVID-19 test positivity was 20.6%. In all, 57.7% were performed for males, predominant amongst those tested across all age groups and waves. Females had significantly lower odds of testing positive for COVID-19 (OR: 0.9; 95% CI: 0.9-1.0). However, when adjusted for gender, age and pandemic phases, the positivity rates between males and females were the same. The odds of a positive result increased significantly with age; individuals aged > 80 years had 2.5 times higher odds of testing positive than those aged 0-10 years (aOR 2.5, 95% CI 2.3-2.7).
The analysis indicates a consistent male dominance in COVID-19 testing, with higher positivity rates in older age groups. Our study highlight the importance of examining demographic characteristics in disease associated data especially, representation of females amongst cohorts.
2020 年至 2022 年期间，巴基斯坦报告了 157 万例 COVID-19 病例，这是基于大约 3060 万例 SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR（逆转录聚合酶链反应）检测得出的。本研究利用了巴基斯坦卡拉奇 Aga Khan 大学医院（AKUH）这一国内最大的检测设施之一的数据，旨在探讨 RT-PCR 检测模式中的性别和年龄相关问题。
我们对 2020 年 2 月至 2022 年 2 月期间从 AKUH 临床实验室记录中提取的 SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR 检测数据进行了回顾性审查。在整个研究期间，我们根据检测模式检查了性别和年龄分布情况。多变量回归模型评估了 COVID-19 阳性与关键变量之间的独立关联。
我们共审查了 470249 次 RT-PCR 检测，发现大多数检测是在 21-40 岁人群中进行的（48.1%）。总体而言，COVID-19 检测阳性率为 20.6%。在所有检测中，57.7%为男性，在所有年龄组和各波次中都占主导地位。女性 COVID-19 检测阳性的可能性显著降低（OR：0.9；95%CI：0.9-1.0）。然而，在考虑性别、年龄和大流行阶段后，男女之间的阳性率相同。阳性结果的可能性随着年龄的增长而显著增加；与 0-10 岁人群相比，80 岁以上人群的阳性检测结果的可能性高出 2.5 倍（aOR 2.5，95%CI 2.3-2.7）。
该分析表明 COVID-19 检测中存在持续的男性主导地位，年龄较大的人群阳性率更高。本研究强调了在与疾病相关的数据中检查人口统计学特征的重要性，尤其是女性在队列中的代表性。
