The effect of inflammatory biomarkers on COVID-19 patients with diabetes and comorbidities

Bouchra Abi-Ayad; Mohammed Benyoucef; Mohammed Choukri Baghdad; Souad Guendouz; Ikram Mahammedi; Amel Mebarki; Rachid Manaa; Nawal Brikci Nigassa; Samia Benchouk

Bouchra Abi-Ayad Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria
Mohammed Benyoucef Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria
Mohammed Choukri Baghdad Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria
Souad Guendouz Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria
Ikram Mahammedi Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria
Amel Mebarki Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria
Rachid Manaa Epidemiology Center, CHU of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria
Nawal Brikci Nigassa Head of Biochemistry Center, CHU of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria
Samia Benchouk Head of the Infectious and Tropical Diseases Center, CHU of Tlemcen, Tlemcen, Algeria

Keywords: Cardiovascular Diseases (CVD), COVID-19, SpO2, CRP, D-dimer, Fibrinogen

Abstract

The Beta variant Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has caused a global health emergency, leading to pulmonary lesions and aggravation with preexisting cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and risk factors. A transversal retrospective study has been conducted at the infectious diseases ward of Tlemcen University Hospital Centre (CHU). The survey was conducted on 482 patients divided into 4 groups linked to preexisting cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. The data were collected from the medical records from March 2020–April 2022. The study revealed a high prevalence in patients with cardiovascular comorbidities (68%), including 37% with diabetes and 69% with hypertension. The clinical and biological evaluation of these patients found clearly worse results with a high mortality rate (34%). In the frame of the biological evaluation, we have noticed an unfavorable evolution for patients with cardiovascular disease history (+). The key parameter of the monitoring is oxygen saturation (SpO2), as the results indicated that persisting hypoxemia in hospitalized patients correlated significantly with C-reactive Protein (CRP) levels (p=0.04) and lymphocytes (p=0.009). Regarding inflammation, CRP levels were higher, exceeding 40 mg/L in subjects with a cardiovascular disease history (CDH+). Furthermore, the results: platelets (<100000/mm3 in patients with diabetes), fibrinogen (>6 g/L), and D-dimer (>1.5 µg/mL) confirmed high thrombotic risk in patients suffering from CVD regardless of diabetes. This study supports the hypothesis that cardiovascular comorbidities are contaminating and aggravating factors for the COVID-19 condition.