Do CRP Levels Predict Severity in COVID-19 Hospitalized Patients?

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), has affected countless countries all over the world with rapidly increasing case fatality reports and a highly variable clinical course. Since the evolution of the clinical condition of these patients is difficult to forecast, early identification of prognostic indicators is an essential foundation to regulate treatment plans and promptly identify the severity of patients’ conditions. Method: A retrospective cohort study where the clinical data of patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 infection were collected from El Obour Ain Shams University Specialized Hospital for Isolation records on admission from April 10, 2020 till July 30, 2020.we assessed the correlation between CRP level on admission with the severity of the COVID-19, the risk for ICU admission and the findings in CT chest in 276 patients. Results: Fever was the most common presenting symptom (total number 135; 41.7%), followed by cough (total number 133; 41.2%). High CRP levels were predictive of higher COVID-19 severity and ICU admission (p=0.000). Likewise, CRP levels were higher in patients with more chest affection as denoted by the CT chest findings (p=0.000). Conclusion: Serum CRP is a simple and effective prognosticator which casts light on potentially critical patients. Consequently, it can be used to reduce the mortality of patients. Funding Statement: None. Declaration of Interests: None. Ethics Approval Statement: Ethical approval or the current study protocol was obtained from Ain Shams University Faculty of Medicine Research Ethics Committee (REC) FWA 00017585.