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Updated: Dec 10, 2025

Author Spotlight: Advancements in Multiplex Detection of Respiratory Viruses
Published on: November 10, 2023
Clinical features and outcomes of seven patients with COVID-19 in a family cluster
Yiling Zhang1, Cheng Zhang1, Ying Hu1
1Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Guizhou Provincial People's Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Treatment of Lung Immune Diseases, Guiyang, 550002, China.
Background:
The family cluster is one of most important modes of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) transmission throughout China, and more details are needed about how family clusters cause the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
Case Presentation:
We retrospectively reviewed 7 confirmed cases from one family cluster. Both clinical features and laboratory examination results were described. Patient 1 had been in close contact with someone who was later confirmed to have COVID-19 in Wuhan City before he returned back to his hometown. He had dinner with 6 other members in his family. All the persons developed COVID-19 successively except for one older woman who neither had dinner with them nor shared a sleeping room with her husband. Six patients had mild or moderate COVID-19 but one older man with underlying diseases progressed into the severe type. After general and symptomatic treatments, all the patients recovered.
Conclusions:
In a family cluster, having dinner together may be an important mode for the transmission of SARS-CoV-2. In this setting, most cases are mild with a favorable prognosis, while elderly patients with underlying diseases may progress into the severe type. For someone who has close contact with a confirmed case, 14-day isolation is necessary to contain virus transmission.
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