COVID-19 associated diabetes mellitus: A review

Abstract

A significantly higher rate of new-onset diabetes in many coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients is a frequently observed phenomenon. The resultant hyperglycemia is known to influence the clinical outcome, thereby increasing the cost of treatment and stay in hospital. This will also affect the post-hospitalization recuperation. It has been observed that new-onset diabetes in COVID-19 patients is associated with considerable increase in morbidity and may be associated with increased mortality in some cases. This mini-review focuses on the possible causes to understand how COVID-19-related diabetes develops, various associated risk factors, and possible mechanism to understand the natural history of the disease process, clinical outcome, associated morbidities and various treatment options in the mana-gement of post COVID-19 diabetes. A literature search was performed in PubMed and other online database using appropriate keywords. A total of 80 articles were found, among which, 53 of the most relevant were evaluated/ analyzed and relevant data were included. The studies show that patients who have had severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection leading to development of COVID-19 may manifest not only with new-onset diabetes but also worsening of pre-existing diabetes. Cytopathic effect and autoimmune destruction of insulin-secreting pancreatic beta cells, cytokine storm during the active phase of infection causing impaired insulin secretion and resistance, drug-induced hyperglycemia, undetected pre-existing hyperglycemia/diabetic condition, and stress-induced impairment of glucose metabolism are some of the possible potential mechanisms of COVID-19-associated new-onset diabetes mellitus. Many studies published in recent times have found a significantly higher rate of new-onset diabetes mellitus in many COVID-19 patients. Whether it is an inflammatory or immune-mediated response, direct effect of virus or combination of these is unclear. The resultant hyperglycemia is known to influence the clinical outcome and has been associated with considerable increase in morbidity and increased mortality in some cases.

Keywords: Coronavirus disease 2019; Coronavirus disease 2019 associated diabetes; Coronavirus disease 2019 related diabetes; Hyperglycemia in coronavirus disease 2019 patients; New-onset diabetes; Post-coronavirus disease 2019 diabetes.