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Hematologic tests and their association with the severity of COVID-19 and periodontitis in hospitalized patients: a
Janet Moradi Haghgoo1,2, Parviz Torkzaban1,2, Maryam Farhadian3
1Department of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran.
Insights
Periodontitis, a chronic inflammatory condition, may worsen COVID-19 severity. This study found specific blood marker changes linked to the interaction between periodontitis and COVID-19, impacting patient outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Medical Research
- Inflammatory Diseases
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- Chronic inflammatory conditions like periodontitis can exacerbate COVID-19.
- Both periodontitis and COVID-19 can significantly impact systemic health and hematological parameters.
- Understanding the interplay between these conditions is crucial for managing patient health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the interaction between periodontitis and COVID-19.
- To identify alterations in hematological test results associated with this interaction.
- To explore the relationship between periodontitis, COVID-19 severity, and blood parameters.
Main Methods:
- Inclusion of hospitalized patients with confirmed COVID-19, categorized by disease severity.
- Performance of periodontal examinations for all participating patients.
- Extraction of relevant medical and hematological data from patient hospital records.
Main Results:
- Minimum white blood cell counts correlated with periodontitis severity.
- The interaction of periodontitis and COVID-19 was linked to elevated white blood cell counts and reduced platelet counts.
- COVID-19 severity showed associations with various hematological markers including oxygen saturation, coagulation times, and kidney/liver function indicators.
Conclusions:
- Several blood parameters are significantly associated with periodontitis, COVID-19, or their combined effects.
- Hematological alterations provide insights into the complex relationship between oral health and systemic viral infection.
- Further research into these interactions may inform clinical management strategies for patients with both conditions.
Background:
The presence of comorbidities, especially those with a chronic inflammatory nature such as periodontitis, can facilitate COVID-19 progression toward more severe forms. Both of these diseases can affect systemic health and alter hematological test results. In this study, we decided to investigate COVID-19 and periodontitis' possible interaction with these alterations.
Methods:
Hospitalized patients with a definitive diagnosis of COVID-19 were included. Controls had mild to moderate COVID-19, while cases had severe to critical COVID-19. Periodontal examination was done for each patient. Relevant medical and hematological data were extracted from patient's hospital files.
Results:
A total of 122 patients entered the final analysis. The minimum white blood cell counts were associated with the severity of periodontitis. The interaction between periodontitis and COVID-19 was associated with increased minimum white blood cell counts and decreased platelet counts. COVID-19 severity was associated with increased venous oxygen saturation, prothrombin time, the maximum partial thromboplastin time, the maximum and average urea, the maximum creatinine, the maximum potassium, and lactate dehydrogenase, and decreased sodium levels.
Conclusions:
Results of this study showed that several blood parameters were associated with periodontitis, COVID-19, or the interaction between them.
