A study of relationship between lipid profile and severity of SARS-CoV-2

ABSTRACT

COVID-19 is a severe acute respiratory disease caused by coronavirus 2. While many biochemical alterations have been studied in patients with COVID-19, only a few studies were available to explore the relationship between serum lipid profile values and the severity of SARS COVID-19 infection. A cross-sectional study was conducted at Chettinad Hospital and Research Institute on 128 patients infected with SARS COVID-19 from March 2020 to September 2020. It was an age and sex-matched study. Patients were categorized into mild and severe based on the signs and symptoms. A fasting serum lipid profile and IL-6 levels were measured and Pearson's correlation analysis was done. There was a highly significant decrease in the median and IQR levels of TC, HDL, and LDL in severe cases as compared to mild cases [TC - mild (256,64), severe (125,44), HDL - mild (46,11), severe (25,13), and LDL - mild (170,48), severe (76,36)]. TGL showed a significant decrease [mild (170,67), severe(110,69)]. IL-6 showed a significant increase in severe cases when compared to mild cases [mild(20,37), severe(62,105)]. Pearson's correlation analysis showed a significant inverse relationship between the levels of TC, HDL, and IL-6. However, TGL and LDL showed inverse but no significant relationship with IL-6. As the severity of COVID-19 increases, lipid profile levels start decreasing. Hypolipidemia is a pathognomic finding in severe SARS COVID-19 infection. Copyright © 2022 The Authors.