Umer Saeed Ansari, Saman Saeed, Shabbir Hussain, Anum Waqar.
Plasma D-dimers levels in covid positive patients presenting early in the disease.
J Allama Iqbal Med Coll Jan ;19(4):829-32.

Background: Covid-19 pandemic has caused death of more than seven million patients worldwide, and is being countered by rapid diagnostic tests and quarantine. The inflammatory markers serve a pivotal role in estimating the disease progression and early diagnosis of the viral infection. Plasma D-dimer levels in covid positive patients are correlated with increased morbidity and mortality due to acute complications and abnormal coagulation. In this study, plasma D-dimer levels were not significantly elevated in patients who presented during the first week of clinical diagnosis of the disease. Aim of this research was to study the plasma levels of D-dimer (D-dimer) in covid positive patients presenting early in the disease, and to understand its possible role as a diagnostic marker in such patients. Methods: 300 patients of different age groups, including both males and females, were recruited in this study, who tested positive for covid infection by rRT-PCR method within one week. Quantitative immunological determination of plasma D-dimer was performed by utilizing immunoassay techniques. Results: Among the 300 covid-positive male and female patients, number of male patients was 201 (67%), while 99 were female patients (33%). Mean plasma D-dimer value was 269 ng/ml. Mean age of all covid positive patients including both males and females was 45 years. High plasma D-DIMER levels were observed in 80 patients (26.6%), whereas, in 220 patients, D- dimer levels were normal (73.3%) Conclusion: The study has demonstrated that D-dimer (D-dimer) levels in covid-positive patients are not elevated in majority of patients presenting within one week of diagnosis. D-dimer, therefore, do not serve as a suitable biomarker for diagnosis of covid infections in patients presenting early in the disease.

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