Epidemiological review of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic up to 15 March 2020

Abstract

Background: Pneumonia of unknown cause detected in Wuhan, China, was the first report on 31 December 2019. The World Health Organization (WHO) officially named it New Coronavirus Disease or COVID-19: "COVI" comes from coronavirus. The "D" stands for the disease. Chinese ministry of Health categorized it as a quarantined disease, and took strict preventive and control measures for this infectious disease. In Iran, the first cases of COVID-19 were reported from Qom on February 19, 2020, and spread to the other 31 provinces in 15 days. This study conducted to investigate some epidemiological features of the COVID-19 epidemic in Iran. Methods: This study was conducted as a narrative review from February 19 to March 15, 2020. In this study, the most recent documentation published in pieces of literature, especially in China, has been reviewed. Moreover, mortality and morbidity of definite cases in Iran were summarized and reported. Findings: The COVID-19 epidemic officially confirmed with two deaths in the city of Qom, Iran, on February 30, 2020, and spread rapidly throughout the 31 provinces in the country. During this period, 13938 cases and 724 deaths due to COVID-19 were reported by the Ministry of Health in Iran. Conclusion: Shreds of evidence suggests that early measures for timely action and early detection of COVID-19 were slightly delayed. © 2016 Isfahan University of Medical Sciences(IUMS). All rights reserved.