Abstract
Although it has been reported that coexistent chronic diseases are strongly associated with COVID-19 severity, investigations of predictors for SARS-CoV-2 infection itself have been seldom performed. To screen potential risk and protective factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection, meta-regression of data from worldwide nations were herein conducted. We extracted total confirmed COVID-19 cases in worldwide 180 nations (May 31, 2020), nation total population, population ages 0-14/≥65, GDP/GNI per capita, PPP, life expectancy at birth, medical-doctor and nursing/midwifery-personnel density, hypertension/obesity/diabetes prevalence, annual PM2.5 concentrations, daily ultraviolet radiation, population using safely-managed drinking-water/sanitation services and hand-washing facility with soap/water, inbound tourism, and bachelor’s or equivalent (ISCED 6). Restricted maximum-likelihood meta-regression in the random-effects model was performed using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis version 3. To adjust for other covariates, we conducted the hierarchical multivariate models. A slope (coefficient) of the meta-regression line for the COVID-19 prevalence was significantly negative for population ages 0-14 (–0.0636; P = .0021) and positive for obesity prevalence (0.0411; P = .0099) and annual PM2.5 concentrations in urban areas (0.0158; P = .0454), which would indicate that the COVID-19 prevalence decreases significantly as children increase and that the COVID-19 prevalence increases significantly as the obese and PM2.5 increase. In conclusion, children (negatively) and obesity/PM2.5 (positively) may be independently associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Competing Interest Statement
The authors have declared no competing interest.
Funding Statement
No external funding was received.
Author Declarations
I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained.
Yes
The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below:
N/A
All necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived.
Yes
I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance).
Yes
I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines and uploaded the relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material as supplementary files, if applicable.
Yes
Footnotes
Conflict of Interest Disclosures: None reported.
Data Availability
The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.