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. 2023 Jan 21;29(3):487–502. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v29.i3.487

Table 2.

Analysis of liver test results in coronavirus disease 2019 patients

Test
Comments
Prolonged INR or thrombocytopenia In one-third of sick patients
Spontaneous coagulopathy/DIC may be present
Thromboembolic incidents are probably frequent
There may be a chance of ACLF
Imaging Where chest-CT is frequently performed: Assessing liver/biliary tract disease might be helpful
Do US, if necessary, but refrain from using US for superfluous imaging (not formally investigated)
Hypoalbuminemia Common in people with systemic inflammatory response
May also be a sign of acute hepatic decompensation or acute liver failure in people with pre-existing liver cirrhosis
High transaminases or bilirubin (> 3 × ULN) Although not typical for COVID-19, ACLF may be present in patients with cirrhosis who already have liver disease
Dyselectrolytemia Diarrhea and other GI problems might result in numerous electrolyte abnormalities
Anemia Consider bleeding due to variceal hemorrhage in the context of MAFLD cirrhosis, portal hypertensive gastropathy or stress mucosal GI ulcer

ACLF: Acute on chronic liver failure; CT: Computed tomography; DIC: Disseminated intravascular coagulation; GI: Gastrointestinal; ULN: Upper limit of normal; US: Ultrasonography; COVID-19: Coronavirus disease 2019; MAFLD: Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease.