Evaluation of fetuin-A, CRP, and CRP/fetuin-A values in COVID-19 patients

INTRODUCTION: Fetuin-A, a glycoprotein with several functions, is also a negative acute phase reactant. The purpose of this study was to investigate levels of serum fetuin-A in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients, its association with disease severity, and whether it has superiority over C-reactive protein (CRP).
METHODS: The research comprised 56 individuals with COVID-19(+) and 30 healthy controls. The COVID-19(+) patient population was split into three subgroups: mild, moderate, and severe. All participants’ serum concentrations of fetuin-A, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) were measured using ELISA commercial test kits. In addition, CRP and other biochemical values from biochemistry laboratory data were gathered, and the CRP/fetuin-A ratio was calculated.
RESULTS: The fetuin-A concentration of the COVID-19(+) patient group was shown to be statistically lower than that of the healthy control group. TNF-α and IL-6 levels were found to be significantly different in both groups. While fetuin-A had a higher area under the curve (AUC) value than CRP (0.875 and 0.800, respectively), CRP/fetuin-A had the strongest AUC (0.933).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Low serum fetuin-A concentrations in COVID-19 patients suggest that fetuin-A is a negative acute phase reactant for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. Furthermore, fetuin-A alone and CRP/fetuin-A value are both contenders for being more remarkable markers than CRP.