Role of electrolytes in determining severity in COVID-19

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a viral disease which originated in the city of Wuhan (China) and progressively spread to all the continents and brought the world to a standstill. Various severity markers have been seen to play a role in the COVID-19. International studies have demonstrated role of serum electrolyte in COVID-19 as a potential severity marker. Hence, this study was undertaken in Indian patients. Material and methods: 100 COVID-19 reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) positive patient of non-severe and severe disease of either gender getting admitted to hospital and above 18 years were enrolled in the month of August to September 2020. The mean values of electrolytes and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (HsCRP) in non- severe and severe disease were compared and correlated. Results: 100 patients including 70 of non-severe and 30 of severe disease were evaluated. The mean sodiumwas 134.03±6.77mEq/L and 135.5± 6.77mEq/l in the non-severe and the severe groups respectively (p value=0.91); potassium was 4.24±0.61mEq/l and 4.52±0.80 mEq/l respectively (p value=0.75); corrected serum calcium was 8.38±0.74 mg/dl and 8.48±0.74mg/dl respectively (p value = 0.95); phosphorus levels was 3.66±1.99mg/dl and 3.45±1.63 respectively (p value = 0.52); and serum magnesium level was 2.15±0.3 mEq/l and 2.03±0.56 mEq/l (p value = 0.18). The mean level of HsCRP was 30.95±49.41 mg/L in non- severe while 94.78±79.62 mg/L in severe infection (p value=0.03). In the severe group, the electrolyte values were found to be poorly correlated with the hsCRP levels. Conclusion: Electrolytes does not serve as severity markers in COVID-19 in an Indian population.