Significance of Haematological Variates in Determining Risk of Cardiovascular Complications Post SARS-CoV-2 Infection: A Prospective Cohort Study

Introduction: Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) is an ongoing global pandemic. Changes in haematological variables in patients with COVID-19 are emerging as important features of the disease. These changes in haematological variables may provide significant clues in the prognosis post Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Aim: To determine the significance of various haematological variables in cardiac outcomes post SARS-CoV-2 infection. Materials and Methods: This was a prospective cohort study conducted at Prince Faisal bin Khalid Cardiac Centre, Abha, Kingdom of Saudi between March 2021 and October 2021. A total of 59 patients who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 with or without cardiac complaints were involved. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were recorded. Leukocyte counts, Neutrophil Counts, Lymphocyte counts, Neutrophil to Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR), platelet counts, Prothrombin Time (PT), Activated Partial Thromboplastin Time (APTT), and D-Dimer were assessed and compared between subjects who developed Cardiovascular Complications (CVC+ group) and the subjects who did not develop CVC post SARS-CoV-2 infection (CVCgroup). Statistical analyses were performed using R scripting language and R Studio (version 1.2.5033, Orange Blossom). For continuous variables, t-test (for normally distributed) and MannWitney U test (for non normally distributed) were employed. For categorical data, Chi-square test (c2 ) was used. A p-value