Serum Krebs von den Lungen-6 for Predicting the Severity of COVID-19 Lung Injury: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Pramana Witarto, Andro; Samarta Witarto, Bendix; Er Putra, Achmad Januar; Pramudito, Shidi Laras; Rosyid, Alfian Nur

Background Lung injury is common in COVID-19 patients. The severity of lung injury appears to be reflected in serum KL-6, a glycoprotein expressed on type II alveolar epithelium. This study aims to assess the role of serum KL-6 in reflecting the severity of lung injury in COVID-19 patients. Methods A systematic search was conducted in Scopus, PubMed, Wiley Online Library, and ProQuest. Articles were screened based on several eligibility criteria and assessed for study quality using NOS. Results This systematic review included four studies involving a total of 151 adult COVID-19 patients. Pooled analysis revealed that serum KL-6 was significantly higher in severe patients (SMD = 1.16; 95% CI = 0.69-1.63) with moderately high pooled sensitivity (79%; 95% CI = 61-91%) and specificity (86%; 95% CI = 72-95%). Conclusion High serum KL-6 may depict more severe lung injury in COVID-19 patients with moderately high sensitivity and specificity.