The clinical and epidemiological characteristics of COVID-19 gradually changed during different waves [1]. The highly transmissible omicron variant that has globally dominated during 2022 has led to an unprecedented surge in the number of infections although producing lower hospital admission rates and less severe disease amongst the patients who are admitted [2]. Moreover, a recent study in the United States has estimated that almost 14% of the SARS-CoV-2 positive patients admitted to hospitals during the omicron BA1 wave had a reason for admission other than COVID-19 (cases of incidental COVID-19) [3], and study conducted in The Netherlands during the omicron BA.1/BA.2 wave found that 31% of the patients admitted with COVID-19 could be classified as incidental COVID-19 cases [4].
