Pakistan Journal of Physiology
Diagnostic performance of serum c-reactive protein, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, and lactate dehydrogenase as adjuncts to rt-pcr in detection of COVID-19
By Memona Zia, Maryam Rafiq, Rabia Saeed and 3 others.
Abstract
Background
COVID-19 is a highly transmissible viral infection caused by SARS-CoV-2, with clinical manifestations ranging from asymptomatic disease to severe pneumonia and multi-organ involvement, necessitating timely and accurate diagnosis. Aim was to determine the diagnostic accuracy of serum C-reactive protein (CRP), Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST), Alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels as detecting COVID-19, using RT-PCR as gold standard.
Methods
This Cross-sectional study was conducted in Department of Pathology, Bahawal Victoria Hospital/Civil Hospital Bahawalpur, from 10th Jan to 9th Jul 2023. After informed consent nasopharyngeal swab for RT-PCR and blood samples for CRP, AST, ALT, and LDH were collected from 165 symptomatic patients suspected of COVID-19. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV), and diagnostic accuracy were calculated.