The Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Diabetes Mellitus and Secondary Hyperglycaemia Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019: a Single‐center, Retrospective, Observational Study in Wuhan

Zhang, Yang; Li, Haichao; Zhang, Jian; Cao, Yedi; Zhao, Xue; Yu, Nan; Gao, Ying; Ma, Jing; Zhang, Hong; Zhang, Junqing; Guo, Xiaohui; Liu, Xinmin

AIMS: Since the pandemic outbreak of COVID‐19, limited information is available on diabetic patients with COVID‐19. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively analysed 166 COVID‐19 patients at Tongji Hospital (Wuhan) from February 8 to March 21, 2020. Clinical characteristics and outcomes (as of April 4, 2020) were compared among control (group 1), secondary hyperglycaemia (group 2: no diabetes history, FPG levels ≥7.0 mmol/L once and HbA1c values <6.5%) and diabetic (group 3) patients. RESULTS: Compared to group 1, groups 2 and 3 had higher rates of leukocytosis, neutrophilia, lymphocytopenia, eosinopenia, and levels of sCRP, ferritin and d‐dimer (P < 0.05 for all). Group 2 patients have higher levels of LDH, prevalence of liver dysfunction and increased IL‐8 than those in group 1, a higher prevalence of increased IL‐8 was found in group 2 than in group 3 (P < 0.05 for all). The proportions of critical patients in groups 2 and 3 were significantly higher compared to group 1 (38.1%, 32.8% vs. 9.5%, P < 0.05 for both). Groups 2 and 3 had significantly longer hospital stays than group 1, which was nearly one week longer. The composite outcomes risks were 5.47 (1.56–19.82) and 2.61 (0.86–7.88) times greater in group 2 and 3 than in group 1. CONCLUSIONS: Hyperglycemia in both diabetes and secondary hyperglycemia patients with COVID‐19 may indicate poor prognoses. There were differences between secondary hyperglycemia and diabetes patients. We recommend that clinicians pay more attention to the blood glucose status of COVID‐19 patients, even those not diagnosed with diabetes before admission.