γ‐Glutamyltransferase Elevations Are Frequent in Patients With COVID‐19: A Clinical Epidemiologic Study

Abstract A newly identified coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which causes the infectious coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), emerged in December 2019 in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, and now poses a major threat to global public health Previous studies have observed highly variable alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels in patients with COVID-19 However, circulating levels of the cholangiocyte injury biomarker ?-glutamyltransferase (GGT) have yet to be reported in the existing COVID-19 case studies Herein, we describe the relationship between GGT levels and clinical and biochemical characteristics of patients with COVID-19 Our study is a retrospective case series of 98 consecutive hospitalized patients with confirmed COVID-19 at Wenzhou Central Hospital in Wenzhou, China, from January 17 to February 5, 2020 Clinical data were collected using a standardized case report form Diagnosis of COVID-19 was assessed by symptomatology, reverse transcriptase?polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and computed tomography (CT) scan The medical records of patients were analyzed by the research team Of the 98 patients evaluated, elevated GGT levels were observed in 32 7%;increased C-reactive protein (CRP) and elevated ALT and AST levels were observed in 22 5%, 13 3%, and 20 4%, respectively;and elevated alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and triglycerides (TGs) were found in 2% and 21 4%, respectively Initially, in the 82 patients without chronic liver disease and alcohol history;age older than 40 years (P = 0 027);male gender (P = 0 0145);elevated CRP (P = 0 0366), ALT (P < 0 0001), and ALP (P = 0 0003);and increased TGs (P = 0 0002) were found to be associated with elevated GGT levels Elevated GGT (P = 0 0086) and CRP (P = 0 0162) levels have a longer length of hospital stay Conclusion: A sizable number of patients with COVID-19 infection had elevated serum GGT levels This elevation supports involvement of the liver in persons with COVID-19