Peripheral Blood Smear Morphology- A Red Flag in COVID-19

ABSTRACT

Covid-19 pandemic has affected the whole word medically, economically and emotionally. It is being considered as the biggest pandemic after the Spanish flu, with very high degree of morbidity and mortality in those with complications. The diagnostic and treatment criteria of this novel virus are being updated frequentlyas nothing much is known about it. This highlights the importance of hematology lab parametersin Coviddiagnosis and prediction of disease progression. Multiple studieson complete blood counts and it’s derived parametershave beenconductedin patients of Covid-19however limited literature is available whichdiscussesthe morphology of circulatingblood cellsin Covid-19 cases.This short communicationis presentedwith the purpose of highlighting theperipheral blood findings of 50 lab confirmed Covid-19 cases admitted atSuper SpecialtyPediatric Hospital and Post Graduate Teaching Hospital, NOIDA.Keywords Covid-19; morbidity and mortality; SARS CoV2; real time RT-PCR.Short Communication