A Prediction Model for High Risk of Positive RT-PCR Tests in Discharged Patients with COVID-19 Based on Random Forest Model

Several recent studies have reported that a few patients had positive SARS-CoV-2 RNA tests after hospital discharge. The high-risk factors associated with these patients remain to be identified. A total of 463 patients with COVID-19 discharged from Leishenshan Hospital in Wuhan, China, between February 8 and March 8, 2020 were initially enrolled, and 351 patients with at least two weeks of follow-up were finally included. Seventeen of the 351 discharged patients had positive tests for SARS-CoV-2 RNA. Based on clinical characteristics and mathematical modeling, patients with shorter hospital stays and less oxygen desaturation were at higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 RNA reoccurrence after discharge. Notably, traditional Chinese medicine treatment offered extensive benefits to reduce risk. Particular attention should be paid to those patients with high risk, and traditional Chinese medicine should be advocated. Funding Statement: The study was supported by National Key Research and Development Plan of China (2020YFC0845500). Declaration of Interests: All authors have no conflicts of interest or financial ties to disclose. Ethics Approval Statement: The study was approved by the ethics committee of Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University (No. 2020074). The informed consent of the patients was waived for this infectious disease by the ethics committee.