The Diagnostic Value of Inflammatory Markers (CRP, IL6, CRP/IL6, CRP/L, LCR) for Assessing the Severity of COVID-19 Symptoms Based on the MEWS and Predicting the Risk of Mortality

Introduction: Various diagnostic tools are used to assess the severity of COVID-19 symptoms and the risk of mortality, including laboratory tests and scoring indices such as the Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS). The diagnostic value of inflammatory markers for assessing patients with different severity of COVID-19 symptoms according to the MEWS was evaluated in this study. Materials and Methods: The concentrations of CRP (C-reactive protein) (immunoassay) and IL6 (interleukin 6) (electrochemilu-minescence assay) were determined, and CRP/IL6, CRP/L, and LCR ratios were calculated in blood serum samples collected from 374 COVID-19 patients.Results: We demonstrated that CRP, IL6, CRP/IL6, CRP/L, LCR inflammatory markers increase significantly with disease progres-sion assessed based on the MEWS in COVID-19 patients and may be used to differentiating patients with severe and non-severe COVID-19 and to assess the mortality.Conclusion: The diagnostic value of inflammatory markers for assessing the risk of mortality and differentiating between patients with mild and severe COVID-19 was confirmed.

Automated summary

This study evaluated the diagnostic value of inflammatory markers for assessing COVID-19 patients with different severity of symptoms. The concentrations of CRP and IL6 were determined, and ratios of CRP/IL6, CRP/L, and LCR were calculated. The results showed that these inflammatory markers significantly increased with disease progression based on the MEWS and could be used to differentiate between severe and non-severe COVID-19 patients and assess mortality.