Abstract: F1000Research 2020, 9:1439 Last updated: 07 JAN 2022 RESEARCH ARTICLE Clinical characteristics and predictors of the duration of hospital stay in COVID-19 patients in Jordan [version 1; peer review: 1 approved with reservations, 1 not approved] Rami S. Alqassieh 1,2, Isam K. Bsisu 3, Mohammed Qussay Al-Sabbagh Naser M. El-Hammuri2,5, Moh’d A. Yousef 3, Mohammad A. El Jarbeh 3, Ahmed A. Sharqawi 3, Heba Z. Smadi3, Sami A. Abu-Halaweh3, Mohammad M. Abufaraj6,7 4, 1Cardiac Anesthesia Division, Department of Anesthesia and Intensive care, Prince Hamza Hospital, Amman, Jordan 2Faculty of Medicine, Hashemite University, Zarqa, Jordan 3Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, School of medicine, The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan 4School of Medicine, The University of jordan, Amman, Jordan 5Department of Surgery, Prince Hamza Hospital, Amman, Jordan 6Division of Urology, Department of Special Surgery, School of Medicine, The University of Jordan, Amman, Jordan 7Department of Urology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria v1 First published: 10 Dec 2020, 9:1439 https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.27419.1 Open Peer Review Latest published: 10 Dec 2020, 9:1439 https://doi.org/10.12688/f1000research.27419.1 Reviewer Status Abstract Background: On March 11th, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) as a global pandemic. Healthcare systems in low- and middle-income countries may face serious limitations during a pandemic, for which understanding the predictors of prolonged hospital stay are crucial in decreasing the mortality rate. The aim of this study was to investigate the predictors of increased length of hospitalization among COVID-19 patients. Methods: In this prospective study, we investigated the effect of presenting symptoms and laboratory investigations on the duration of hospitalization of 131 COVID-19 patients at a tertiary hospital in Jordan from March 17th to April 9th, 2020. Results: Patients median age was 24 years [interquartile range (IQR): 8-39], of which 67 (51.15%) were males and 64 (48.85%) were females. Smokers had shorter in-hospital stay (OR: -3.52; 95% CI: -6.73 to -0.32; P=0.03). Taste loss (OR: 5.1; 95% CI: 1.95 to 8.25; P<0.01) and chills or rigors (OR: 4.08; 95% CI: 0.73 to 7.43; P=0.02) were the symptoms significantly associated with increased in-hospital stay, while those who had malaise (OR: -4.98; 95% CI: -8.42 to -1.59; P<0.01) and high white blood cell (WBC) count (OR: -0.74; 95% CI: -1.31 to -0.17; P=0.01) had faster recovery. Conclusions: Our study found that the most common presenting Invited Reviewers version 1 10 Dec 2020 1 2 report report 1. Denise Battaglini , San Martino Policlinico Hospital, Genoa, Italy 2. Omar Soliman Mohamed El-Masry , Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia Any reports and responses or comments on the article can be found at the end of the article. Page 1 of 13 F1000Research 2020, 9:1439 Last updated: 07 JAN 2022 symptoms of COVID-19 are cough, malaise, and headache. Smoking, presenting with malaise or elevated WBCs were associated with shorter hospital stay, while loss of taste and chills or rigors at presentation were associated with a longer in-hospital stay. Keywords COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, symptoms, smoking, Hydroxychloroquine. This article is included in the Emerging Diseases and Outbreaks gateway. This article is included in the Coronavirus collection. Corresponding..