D-dimer level is associated with the severity of COVID-19

Abnormal coagulation function has been demonstrated to be involved in the disease progression of COVID-19. However, the association between D-dimer levels and the severity of COVID-19 is not clear. The study was aimed to investigate the association between D-dimer levels and the severity of COVID-19 based on a cohort study and meta-analysis. Demographic and clinical data of all confirmed cases with COVID-19 on admission to Tongji Hospital from January 27 to March 5, 2020, were collected and analyzed, and coagulation function parameters were described and compared between patients with severe infection and those with non-severe infection. Cohort studies reporting risk estimates for the D-dimer and severity of COVID-19 association were searched and included to perform a meta-analysis. In our cohort study, patients with severe disease were more likely to exhibit dysregulated coagulation function, and a significantly higher D-dimer level (median 1.8 μg/ml [interquartile range 0.9–4.6] vs 0.5 [0.3–1.1], p