Identification of hematological and inflammatory parameters associated with disease severity in hospitalized patients...

India has emerged as the second worst hit nation by the Coronavirus pandemic in terms of total number of cases. Our data on hematological and inflammatory markers associated with COVID-19 is very limited. This study was conducted to assess the utility of various biomarkers in identifying severe disease.

All confirmed cases of COVID-19 admitted in our tertiary care centre from 1^st March 2021 to 31^st March 2021 were enrolled in the study. They were categorized into severe and non-severe disease categories based on pre-decided criteria. Their complete blood count parameters, D-dimer levels, serum C-reactive protein (CRP), ferritin and Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) values were retrieved.

All parameters were expressed as Mean ± Standard deviation for the two groups of patients. Student's t-test was used to test significance of the above markers between severe and non- severe disease. (P value < 0.05 was taken as statistically significant).

A total of 150 COVID RT-PCR positive patients were evaluated. The patients with higher Absolute Neutrophil Count (ANC), Neutrophil to lymphocyte Ratio (NLR), Platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR), D-dimer levels and raised serum CRP, LDH, ferritin along with lymphocytopenia were associated with severe disease (P < 0.05). Hemoglobin, total leucocyte count and platelet count showed no correlation with disease severity.

These biomarkers associated with disease severity especially NLR, PLR, D-dimer and serum CRP levels could be used to triage patients at the time of admission thereby identifying those requiring intensive care and enabling optimal resource utilization.