Plasma lipid profile: a predictive marker of disease severity among COVID-19 patients-an opportunity for low-income countries

Yasser O Mosaad; Mohamed A Baraka; Ahmed E Abou Warda; Hayam Ateyya; Mohammed A Hussein; Sayed Gaber

doi:10.1007/s40267-022-00916-8

Plasma lipid profile: a predictive marker of disease severity among COVID-19 patients-an opportunity for low-income countries

Drugs Ther Perspect. 2022;38(6):286-291. doi: 10.1007/s40267-022-00916-8. Epub 2022 Jun 27.

Authors

Yasser O Mosaad¹, Mohamed A Baraka^{2

3}, Ahmed E Abou Warda⁴, Hayam Ateyya^{1

5}, Mohammed A Hussein⁶, Sayed Gaber⁷

Affiliations

¹ Pharmacy Practice and Clinical Pharmacy Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Future University, Cairo, Egypt.
² Clinical Pharmacy Program, College of Pharmacy, Al Ain Campus, Al Ain University, P.O. Box 64141, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi United Arab Emirates.
³ Clinical Pharmacy Department, College of Pharmacy, Al-Azhar University, Nasr city, Cairo Egypt.
⁴ Clinical Pharmacy Department, Faculty of pharmacy, October 6 University, P.O. Box 12585, Giza, Egypt.
⁵ Medical Pharmacology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
⁶ Faculty of Applied Medical Sciences, October 6 University, Giza, Egypt.
⁷ Critical Care Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to assess the correlation between body mass index (BMI) and plasma lipid profile levels in mild and severe COVID-19 patients.

Method: This was a prospective, observational, cohort study, conducted in a medical referral center specializing in management of COVID-19 cases. Patients were divided into two groups according to infection severity (mild and severe). Blood samples were obtained from all patients who tested positive to a PCR test for measuring biochemical and inflammatory markers such as lactate dehydrogenase, ferritin, C-reactive protein, and d-dimer, as well as lipid profile, including total cholesterol, triacylglycerols, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), which were analyzed and compared between the two groups. Pearson's correlation was used to assess the correlation between BMI and plasma lipid profile among mild and severe cases.

Results: The levels of plasma triacylglycerols, d-dimer, lactate dehydrogenase, ferritin, and C-reactive protein with severe infection were significantly different between patients with mild and severe COVID-19 symptoms (p = 0.036, 0.03, 0.001, 0.014, and 0.006, respectively). A positive correlation between BMI and triglyceride levels was observed only in the severe infection group. However, HDL-C was negatively correlated with BMI.

Conclusion: A routine lipid profile test might help as a marker of inflammation and risk stratification in patients with COVID-19. Especially in middle- or low-income countries, the test can rapidly help clinicians to delineate prognostic measures and hence management and treatment plans for this disease as the levels of the lipid profile were correlated with the patients' BMI and infection severity.