ABSTRACT
Background: The pandemic coronavirus disease (COVID-19) dramatically spread worldwide. Considering several laboratory parameters and comorbidities may facilitate the assessment of disease severity. Early recognition of disease progression associated with severe cases of COVID-19 is essential for timely patient triaging. Our study investigated the characteristics and role of laboratory results and comorbidities in the progression and severity of COVID-19 cases. Methods: The study was conducted from early-June to mid-August 2020. Blood samples and clinical data were taken from 322 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 at Qala Hospital, Kalar, Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Biological markers used in this study include complete blood count (CBC), D-dimer, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), serum ferritin, blood sugar, C-reactive protein (CRP) and SpO2. Results: The sample included 154 males (47.8%) and 168 females (52.2%). Most females were in the mild and moderate symptom groups, while males developed more severe symptoms. Regarding comorbidities, diabetes mellitus was considered the greatest risk factor for increasing the severity of COVID-19 symptoms. As for biological parameters, WBC, granulocytes, ESR, Ferritin, CRP and D-Dimer were elevated significantly corresponding to the severity of the disease, while lymphocytes and SpO2 showed the opposite pattern. Higher RBC was significantly associated with COVID-19 severity, especially in females. Conclusion: Gender, age and diabetes mellitus are important prognostic risk factors associated with severity and mortality of COVID-19. Relative to non-severe COVID-19, severe cases are characterized by an increase of most biological markers. These markers could be used to recognize severe cases and to monitor the clinical course of COVID-19.