JOURNAL WATCH
This nomogram, derived from 300+ person retrospective study, could help clinicians to early identify patients who will exacerbate to severe COVID-19, which will enable better centralized management and early treatment of severe patients.
So far, prognosis factors of COVID-19 mainly focus on the immune cells. In this study, researchers found that older age, higher lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and C-reactive protein, RDW (the coefficient of variation of red blood cell distribution width), DBIL (direct bilirubin), blood urea nitrogen, and lower albumin on admission correlated with higher odds of severe COVID-19.
Based on these indexes, the researchers developed and validated an effective prognostic nomogram with high sensitivity and specificity for accurate individualized assessment and the incidence of severe COVID-19.
The results also hinted that the turnover of red blood cells might be involved in severe illness.
A Tool to Early Predict Severe Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): A Multicenter Study using the Risk Nomogram in Wuhan and Guangdong, China. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 16 April 2020.
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