1.Liver function injury in patients with omicron variant COVID-19 and its influencing factors
Feng DING ; Zelu MENG ; Yina MENG ; Jiangang WANG ; Lingling YING ; Xiaoqing XIE ; Yafeng YU ; Yida YANG ; Huajiang SHEN
Chinese Journal of Clinical Infectious Diseases 2023;16(5):360-366
Objective:To analyze the incidence of liver function injury in patients infected with 2019-nCoV omicron variant and its influencing factors.Methods:The clinical data and laboratory findings of 897 COVID-19 patients infected with omicron variant in Zhejiang province from February 23 to July 14, 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divide into liver function injury group ( n=243) and non-liver function injury group ( n=654) based on liver function indicators. The clinical characteristics and laboratory tests were compared between the two groups, and influencing factors of liver function injury were analyzed. SPSS 26.0 statistical software was used for data analysis. Results:The incidence of liver injury in this series was 27.09% (243/897). The median age of patients in liver injury group was older, the body mass index (BMI) was higher( Z=-6.237 and -2.166, both P<0.05), the proportions of patients with hypertension and diabetes, and with severe clinical classification were higher ( χ2=17.087, 27.509 and 12.945, all P<0.01) ; the proportion of vaccinated patients was lower ( χ2=17.766, P<0.01) than those in non-liver injury group. The levels of platelet, hemoglobin, albumin and potassium in liver injury group were lower than those in non-liver injury group ( Z=-4.631, -2.368, -10.593 and -2.141, all P<0.05), while serum ALT, AST, γ-GT, urea nitrogen, glucose and hs-CRP levels were higher than those in the non-liver injury group ( Z=-7.451, -8.663, -4.410, -3.824, -3.278 and -3.884, all P<0.01). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that age ( OR=2.580, 95% CI 1.429-4.657, P=0.002), history of diabetes ( OR=3.650, 95% CI 1.698-7.849, P=0.001), and decreased hemoglobin ( OR=1.993, 95% CI 1.066-3.726, P=0.031) and increased hs-CRP ( OR=1.797, 95% CI 1.283-2.517, P=0.001) were risk factors associated with liver function injury, while vaccination ( OR=0.499, 95% CI 0.312-0.798, P=0.004) was the protective factor for liver function. Conclusion:Liver function injury is frequently observed in COVID-19 patients infected with omicron variant, which is linked to age, underlying disease, and elevated inflammatory markers; while vaccination can lower the risk of liver injury in infected patients.