Evaluation of Peripheral Lymphocyte Subsets' Alteration and IL6 Serum Level Correlated with Severity in Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

Abstract

oronaviruses are known for their role in respiratory tract infections. There are seven types of human coronavirus including 229E, NL63, OC43 and HKU1, MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2. Coronaviruses have been the focus of many studies since the emergence of deadly strains including SARS-CoV-1, MERS-CoV and recently SARS-CoV-2 that caused a pandemic. However, there are still many unresolved questions regarding the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 and especially the reasons underlying the extremely different clinical course, ranging from asymptomatic forms to severe manifestations. This study aimed to correlate the peripheral lymphocyte subsets alterations by flowcytometry and IL6 serum level with disease severity in COVID 19 patients. An observational cross-sectional study was performed at Ain Shams University isolation hospitals, Cairo, Egypt during the period from July 2020 to September 2020. Forty five (45) participants were enrolled in this study including 30 COVID-19 patients and 15 healthy controls. There were 21 (70.0%) male patients and 9 (30%) female patients. The patients’ group was divided into two groups; moderate and severe. M