International Journal of Research and Reports in Hematology

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a novel and highly contagious viral infection caused by Sars-cov-2 and has been associated with a hyper-inflammatory immune response. This study aimed to evaluate changes in some inflammatory cytokines as clinical biomarkers to aid in the effective management of COVID-19 progression in Port Harcourt. A case-control study design was employed in this study, where a total of one hundred and ten (110) subjects were recruited, comprising fifty-five (55) COVID-19 positive subjects and fifty-five (55) COVID-19 negative subjects (controls), all between the ages of twenty (20) and seventy (70) years old, and both male and female subjects. Five milliliters (5 ml) of whole blood was collected using standard venipuncture technique with sterile hypodermic syringes and needles, aseptically, and dispensed into a plain bottle for the analysis of inflammatory cytokines. For the confirmation of COVID-19 positivity, a nasopharyngeal swab was collected aseptically using the RT-PCR technique. The results of this study revealed a significantly increased level of IL-6 (p = 0.0399) among subjects with COVID-19. The results from this study indicate significant alterations in inflammatory cytokines among subjects with COVID-19. It is necessary that tertiary health care settings and isolation centres consider IL-6 as a biomarker for effective management of patients with COVID-19 disease.