Predictors of coronavirus disease 2019 severity: A retrospective study of 64 cases.

Huang, Huihuang; Song, Bing; Xu, Zhe; Jiao, Yanmei; Huang, Lei; Zhao, Peng; Huang, Jiagan; Zhou, Zihan; Zhao, Zhuanghong; Tian, Jing; Zhou, Yuting; Wang, Fu-Sheng; Jiang, Tianjun

To analyze clinical characteristics and potential predictors of disease severity in patients with COVID-19.Clinical data from 64 patients with COVID-19 were retrospectively analyzed. Of the 64 patients, 37 were male and 27 were female. Their mean age was 47.8 years, 43 (67.2%) cases were non-severe, 21 (32.8%) were severe, and 2 patients (3.1%) died. Age and serum ferritin were significantly associated with COVID-19 severity. Repeated monitoring of ferritin, interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, lactic acid dehydrogenase, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate during COVID-19 treatment may assist the prediction of disease severity and evaluation of treatment effects. There were no significant differences in the duration of severe illness or the number of days on high-level respiratory support between a low-dose methylprednisolone group and a high-dose methylprednisolone group. The mean number of days in hospital in the high dose group was higher than that in the low-dose group. Repeated monitoring of ferritin, interleukin-6, C-reactive protein, lactic acid dehydrogenase, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate during COVID-19 treatment may assist the prediction of disease severity and evaluation of treatment effects.