Individual components of metabolic syndrome as a prognostic factor for morbidity and mortality in COVID-19

Background: COVID-19 has emerged as a rapidly spreading pandemic with millions of deaths. We aimed to investigate whether metabolic syndrome can be used as a prognostic factor for the outcome of patients infected with this viral disease, regarding the ICU stay, the requirement of mechanical ventilation (MV) and mortality. Methodology: This retrospective study included 90 patients admitted to intensive care unit (ICU) of Ain Shams University for pneumonic COVID-19 with a confirmed positive RT-PCR for COVID-19 and positive changes on chest computed tomography, over a period of 10 months from July 2021 to April 2022. They were divided into two groups according to the presence or absence of metabolic syndrome. The primary outcome measured was the length of ICU stay. Secondary outcome was the percentage of patients requiring mechanical ventilation (MV) and the mortality rate in the two groups. Results: Patients with metabolic syndrome had higher liver transaminases, random blood glucose, triglycerides, ferritin, and P/F ratio compared to those without metabolic syndrome (P < 0.05). Components of metabolic syndrome such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and obesity significantly increased the risk of hospitalization and mortality in COVID-19 patients (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Metabolic syndrome is a better prognostic indicator for severe disease outcomes in patients with COVID-19 than its individual components. Although patients with metabolic syndrome didn’t have a higher need for mechanical ventilation, they had longer duration of ICU stay and a higher mortality rate. Abbreviations: ACE-2: angiotensin-converting enzyme-2, hs-CRP: High sensitivity C-reactive protein,ICU: Intensive care unit, MV: Mechanical ventilation, MS: Metabolic syndrome, ROC: Receiver operating characteristic Key words: Metabolic Syndrome; COVID-19; ICU; Mechanical ventilation; Mortality Citation: Refaat SA, Elshaer AN, Hamza AH, Abdou AMH, SakrHAM. Individual components of metabolic syndrome as a prognostic factor for morbidity and mortality in COVID-19. Anaesth. pain intensive care 2023;27(3):343−350. DOI: 10.35975/apic.v27i3.2225 Received: February 14, 2023; Reviewed: March 08, 2023; Accepted: March 16, 2023