Eight hospitalized patients with COVID-19

In December 2019, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) emerged in China and has spread globally, creating a pandemic. Information about the clinical characteristics of infected patients is limited. We hereby report the initial experience (clinical features and management) of COVID-19 cases in India. Among the first eight patients diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection in Uttara Kannada district, clinical presentation was frequently a mild respiratory tract infection. Only one of eight patients required supplemental oxygen. Although we cannot draw any conclusions on the basis of these very few cases, available data indicate considerable variability among different countries in the proportion of severe cases of COVID-19 among those testing positive.