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Serum homocysteine level in pediatric patients with COVID-19 and its correlation with the disease severity

Eman M Fouda1, Nancy S Wahba2, Asmaa I M Elsharawy3

  • 1Pediatrics Department, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.

Pediatric Pulmonology
|April 14, 2022
PubMed

Insights

Elevated homocysteine (Hcy) levels in children with COVID-19 correlate with disease severity. This finding suggests Hcy may serve as a valuable biomarker for predicting severe outcomes in pediatric COVID-19 cases.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric infectious diseases
  • Cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors

Background:

  • Thrombosis and embolism are potential complications in pediatric COVID-19 patients, though less common than in adults.
  • Existing biomarkers like d-dimer are insufficient for assessing COVID-19 severity in children.
  • Homocysteine (Hcy), a known prothrombotic factor, is elevated in adult COVID-19 patients, suggesting its potential as a pediatric severity biomarker.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the correlation between serum total homocysteine (tHcy) levels and COVID-19 severity in pediatric patients.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional study involving 40 pediatric COVID-19 patients and 40 healthy controls.
  • Serum tHcy levels were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.
  • Correlation analysis was performed between serum tHcy and clinical, laboratory, and radiological parameters.

Main Results:

  • Pediatric COVID-19 patients exhibited significantly higher median serum tHcy levels (27.5 μmol/L) compared to controls (1.8 μmol/L).
  • Serum tHcy showed a significant positive correlation with d-dimer, ferritin, liver enzymes (AST, ALT), and blood urea nitrogen.
  • A highly significant positive correlation was observed between tHcy levels and indicators of severe disease, including high COVID-19 reporting and data system scores, pediatric intensive care unit admission, and overall disease severity classification.

Conclusions:

  • Elevated serum homocysteine (Hcy) levels are significantly associated with increased COVID-19 severity in children.
  • Homocysteine (Hcy) shows promise as a potential biomarker for predicting severe COVID-19 outcomes in pediatric populations.
Abstract

Keywords:
COVID-19biomarkershomocysteine

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