Comparative Evaluation of Liver Function with Different Grades of Lung Involvement in COVID 19 Patients

Abstract

Background:  The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak is the global pandemic causes severe acute respiratory syndrome, affects the liver in the earlier stages⁵. In our biochemistry laboratory we observed most of the covid-19 patients have deranged liver function tests commonly mixed type. Thus the main aim of our study was to analyse the association of LFT with lung involvement in symptomatic covid-19 patients with or without comorbidities.

Method:  This study is a retrospective cross sectional study, where we collected 1000 biochemical data of RT-PCR confirmed COVID-19 cases with positive CT-chest reports at the time of admission, before starting the treatment and analyzed the biochemistry data in 2 different forms. One is comparing the data of covid-19 positive cases with comorbidity to no comorbidity. Another form, the cases were classified into 4 grades based on the CT-chest, and analyzed the relationship between CT-Chest and liver function parameters.

Results: The data of 1000 cases were compared statistically. It showed a significant number of   patients with COVID-19, had abnormal liver function at the earlier state on infection. 90% of the cases have at least one abnormal liver function tests.Patients having >50% lung involvement have increased enzyme levels and decreased total protein and albumin levels, when  compared with those having <50% lung involvement

Conclusion:  In COVID-19 patients, apart from the lung involvement, extra pulmonary manifestations are also common. Liver is the most commonly affected along with lung at earlier stages.