Correlation of severity of disease and changes in basic hematlological parameters in patients of COVID-19

Abstract

Objective: To determine the correlation between disease severity and changes in basic hematological parameters in cases of Covid-19 in a tertiary care center. Materials and methods: This Cross Sectional analytical study was done in Khyber Teaching Hospital from March to June 2020. Covid-19 cases diagnosed by nasal swab PCR were included in the study. Clinical features were noted by doctor on duty and complete blood count was done. Data was analyzed by SPSS. Mean and standard deviation were used for quantitative data. Frequency and percentages were used for qualitative data. Shapiro Wilk’s test was done to find normality of the data. Rank biserial correlation test was applied to determine association between ordinal (decreased, normal and increased cell counts) and dichotomous (severe and non-severe disease) variables. Levels of hemoglobin leukocyte count and platelet counts in severe cases were shown by box plots. Results: Mean age of 101 cases of Covid-19 was 56±15.7 years. Male to female ratio was 1.5:1. Commonest clinical features were generalized body aches and fever, seen in 53(52.5%) and 48(47.5%) cases respectively. 36 (35.6%) cases were serious and needed ventilatory support. In serious cases, hemoglobin and platelet count was normal in most of the cases i.e. 16(44.4%) and 30(83.3%) respectively, while the leukocyte count was increased in 26 (72%) which was statistically significant (p=.017, OR=1.124). Conclusion: Leukocyte count is high in cases of Covid-19. There is no significant correlation between severity level and hemoglobin and platelet count. The raised total leukocyte count is associated with severe disease in Covid19.