Cor Vasa 2022, 64(4):399-402 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2022.018
Mortality, deep vein thrombosis, and D-dimer levels in patients with COVID-19
- a Cardiovascular Surgery Department in Medicine School in São José do Rio, National Council for Research and Development, Brazil
- b Resident of Service Vascular Surgery of the Medicine School in São José do Rio, Brazil
- c Vascular Surgery of Service Echography in Hospital de Base-Medicine School of São José do Rio, Brazil
Aim: The aim of the present study was to analyze D-dimer levels and associate these levels with deep vein thrombosis and mortality in patients with COVID-19.
Method: From a population of approximately 1200 patients evaluated for the investigation of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) of the lower limbs using bilateral venous Doppler ultrasound, 100 positive for DVT and 100 negative for DVT were selected to compose the present sample. Data were collected on sex, age and D-dimer levels. D-dimer levels were categorized as follows: > 20 µg/mL, 10 to 20 µg/mL, 5 to 10 µg/mL, 3 to 5 µg/mL and < 3 µg/mL. The association between D-dimer category and mortality was evaluated.
Results: The mean D-dimer level was 11.90 and 4.97 µg/mL in the groups with and without DVT; this difference was significant (p = 0.0001, paired t-test). The mortality rate was higher than 35% in patients without DVT and with D-dimer > 3 µg/mL. In the group with DVT, the mortality rate was higher than 55% independently of the D-dimer level.
Conclusion: The assessment of the D-dimer level is fundamental in screening for deep vein thrombosis in patients with COVID-19, as higher levels are associated with greater mortality and the presence of deep vein thrombosis.
Keywords: COVID-19, D-dimer, Deep vein thrombosis, Mortality
Received: January 12, 2022; Revised: January 12, 2022; Accepted: March 3, 2022; Published: September 1, 2022 Show citation
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