Cortisol and COVID-19—Putting Undue Stress on the “Stress Hormone”

ABSTRACT

Serum cortisol is a measure of underlying disease severity. The more severe the disease, the higher the circulating cortisol levels and the greater the chances of poor prognosis/mortality. Not surprisingly, a recent study found that higher serum cortisol was associated with poor prognosis in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Nevertheless, the study did not take into consideration the confounding effect of COVID-19 severity;hence, the results could not be regarded as being fully adjusted. Besides, guiding glucocorticoid therapy based on serum cortisol levels is an impractical proposition, and to date is not backed by robust evidence. Therefore, routine measurement of serum cortisol in patients with COVID-19 is a futile endeavor and should not be encouraged. © Touch Medical Media 2020