PWE-37 The long-term follow-up of COVID-19 related liver injury

IntroductionAcute COVID-19 infection is well-known to cause abnormalities in liver blood tests (LBTs). This study aimed to identify what are the long-term implications of COVID-19 on LBTs.MethodsThis is a retrospective cohort study that examined the impact of COVID-19 infection on LBTs both during acute infection and for up to one year following hospital admission in 373 patients. Data analysis was done using Python using the SciPy and NumPy library. R factor was used to identify type of liver injury;hepatocellular, cholestatic or mixed. χ² test and Fisher exact was used for statistical analysis with p<0.05 being considered significant.ResultsDuring acute infection, 57.5% of patients showed LBT abnormalities with at least one raised liver blood test (ALT, ALP and/or bilirubin). Male patients were significantly more likely to develop LBT abnormalities than were female patients (74.5% versus 25.5%;p<0.001). The rate of LBT abnormalities was significantly correlated with severity of COVID-19 infection, such that patients requiring ITU admission were more likely to have abnormal LBTs compared to those treated on a general ward (87% versus 51% respectively;p<0.001). During short term follow-up (1-5 months post discharge), LBT abnormalities persisted in 31.3% of patients. LBT abnormalities persisted for up to 12 months in 24.0% of patients. In both the acute setting and long-term follow-up, cholestatic or mixed injury types were most commonly seen (acute;41.1%, 41.6% respectively, long-term;50.0%, 44.4% respectively).ConclusionOur data suggests that up to one in four patients have persistent LBT abnormalities up to one year following COVID-19 infection. Future research is needed to investigate what the clinical significance of this LBT abnormalities is and whether there are interventions, pharmacological or otherwise, that could reduce COVID-19 related liver injury, both in the acute setting, and longer-term.KeywordsCOVID-19, coronavirus, hepatology, liver function