Epidemiological Features of COVID-19 Patients in Terengganu State of Malaysia and the Predictors for SARS-CoV-2 Transmissibility

Background: Terengganu state has experienced fifteen COVID-19 communal clusters throughout the year 2020. Knowing the predisposing factors of COVID-19 transmissibility can be helpful in planning the control and preventive measures. This study aimed to describe the socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of COVID-19 patients in Terengganu state, and to determine the predictors for SARS-CoV-2 transmissibility using RT-PCR cycle threshold (Ct) value as surrogate marker. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Terengganu state including all COVID-19 cases from 1st March 2020 until 31st January 2021 based on retrospective record review. The inclusion criteria were individuals with laboratory RT-PCR confirmed positive test for COVID-19. Descriptive statistics, simple and multiple linear regression analyses were employed for statistical analysis. Result: There were 2,142 COVID-19 cases in Terengganu during the studied period. The mean age of cases was 33 (±17) years. Majority of COVID-19 cases were male (60.6%), adult (70.0%) and from working group (49.2%). 3.9% of cases were healthcare workers. Among the common symptoms were fever (17.2%) and cough (14.0). The mean RT-PCR Ct value was 25.76 (±10.99). Multiple linear regression revealed older age, male gender, having fever and cough as the significant predictors for high SARS-CoV-2 transmissibility with β: -0.06 (95%CI: -0.09,-0.03); p