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The Effects of Laboratory Parameters on the Prognosis of COVID-19
Fatma Kesmez Can1, Handan Alay1, Ayşe Albayrak1
1Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Atatürk University Faculty of Medicine, Erzurum, Turkey.
Insights
Laboratory markers like C-reactive protein and ferritin can help predict coronavirus disease 2019 severity. Elevated levels of certain markers and decreased levels of others indicate a more severe disease course, aiding in early diagnosis and treatment.
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Clinical Pathology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) remains a global health challenge.
- Understanding disease progression is crucial for timely medical intervention.
- Laboratory parameters offer insights into disease severity and patient outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate differences in laboratory parameters across various clinical presentations of COVID-19.
- To identify specific biomarkers indicative of severe COVID-19.
- To evaluate the utility of these markers in assessing disease severity.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of 443 RT-PCR confirmed COVID-19 patients.
- Classification of patients into four clinical groups: asymptomatic, uncomplicated, mild/moderate, and severe.
- Statistical evaluation of laboratory markers including procalcitonin, serum ferritin, C-reactive protein, and complete blood counts.
Main Results:
- Severe COVID-19 cases showed significantly elevated procalcitonin, serum ferritin, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein, neutrophil count, D-dimer, troponin, and lactate dehydrogenase.
- Conversely, severe cases exhibited decreased levels of albumin, platelets, and lymphocytes.
- A statistically significant difference (P < .001) was observed in these parameters between the clinical groups.
Conclusions:
- Elevated C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, ferritin, and neutrophil counts are significant indicators of severe COVID-19.
- Decreased albumin, platelet, and lymphocyte counts are also associated with severe disease.
- These laboratory markers can be valuable tools for determining COVID-19 severity and guiding treatment decisions.
Objective:
While the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic is an ongoing issue across the world, understanding the course of the disease is important for early diagnosis and treatment. We aimed, with this study, to determine the differences between laboratory parameters in different clinical pictures of coronavirus disease 2019.
Materials And Methods:
The study included 443 patients who presented to Atatürk University Medical Faculty Hospital between March 15, 2020, and June 15, 2020, and were diagnosed with coronavirus disease 2019 upon a positive Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) result. The hospitalized patients were divided into 4 groups based on their clinical status. The roles of these markers in determining the severity of coronavirus disease 2019 were statistically evaluated.
Results:
A total of 443 patients with RT-PCR confirmation were included in the study. The mean age was 46.0 ± 19.1 years and 54.4% of the patients were male. According to the clinical classification, 16.3% of the cases were asymptomatic, 25.7% uncomplicated, 35.7% mild/moderate, and 22.3% severe. The first 3 most frequent symptoms were cough (21.3%), fever (17.7%), and fatigue (15.5%). Hypertension (36.1%) was the major comorbidity among the patients. During the follow-up of severe cases, 39.4% developed the need for intensive care. The overall mortality rate, on the other hand, was 4.7%. Regarding laboratory parameters, procalcitonin (PCT), serum ferritin, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein, neutrophil count, D-dimer, troponin, and lactate dehydrogenase were at the highest level in the severe patient group while albumin, platelet, and lymphocyte count were found to be at the lowest level in the same group. A statistically significant difference was detected between the groups (P < .001).
Conclusion:
The increase in C-reactive protein, PCT, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, ferritin, troponin, D-dimer, lactate dehydrogenase, and neutrophil count and the decrease in albumin, platelet, and lymphocyte count are significant in the severe patient group; it has been concluded that they can be used to determine the severity of coronavirus disease 2019.
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