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The DOI matches its Crossref record; 31 of the 31 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

COVID-19: Abnormal liver function tests

Open access
Cai, Qingxian, Huang, Deliang, Yu, Hong, Zhu, Zhibin, Xia, Zhang, Su, Yinan, Li, Zhiwei, Zhou, Guangde, Gou, Jizhou, Qu, Jiuxin, Sun, Yan, Liu, Yingxia, He, Qing, Chen, Jun, Liu, Lei, Xu, Lin·2020·Journal of Hepatology

Abstract

Background & Aims Recent data on the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has begun to shine light on the impact of the disease on the liver. But no studies to date have systematically described liver test abnormalities in patients with COVID-19. We evaluated the clinical characteristics of COVID-19 in patients with abnormal liver test results. Methods Clinical records and laboratory results were obtained from 417 patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 who were admitted to the only referral hospital in Shenzhen, China from January 11 to February 21, 2020 and followed up to March 7, 2020. Information on clinical features of patients with abnormal liver tests were collected for analysis. Results Of 417 patients with COVID-19, 318 (76.3%) had abnormal liver test results and 90 (21.5%) had liver injury during hospitalization. The presence of abnormal liver tests became more pronounced during hospitalization within 2 weeks, with 49 (23.4%), 31 (14.8%), 24 (11.5%) and 51 (24.4%) patients having alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase, total bilirubin and gamma-glutamyl transferase levels elevated to more than 3× the upper limit of normal, respectively. Patients with abnormal liver tests of hepatocellular type or mixed type at admission had higher odds of progressing to severe disease (odds ratios [ORs] 2.73; 95% CI 1.19–6.3, and 4.44, 95% CI 1.93–10.23, respectively). The use of lopinavir/ritonavir was also found to lead to increased odds of liver injury (OR from 4.44 to 5.03, both p <0.01). Conclusion Patients with abnormal liver tests were at higher risk of progressing to severe disease. The detrimental effects on liver injury mainly related to certain medications used during hospitalization, which should be monitored and evaluated frequently. Lay summary Data on liver tests in patients with COVID-19 are scarce. We observed a high prevalence of liver test abnormalities and liver injury in 417 patients with COVID-19 admitted to our referral center, and the prevalence increased substantially during hospitalization. The presence of abnormal liver tests and liver injury were associated with the progression to severe pneumonia. The detrimental effects on liver injury were related to certain medications used during hospitalization, which warrants frequent monitoring and evaluation for these patients.

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Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. Dong, 2019, Zhonghua Wei Zhong Bing Ji Jiu Yi Xue, 31, 571
  2. Meraviglia, 2004, Lopinavir/ritonavir treatment in HIV antiretroviral-experienced patients: evaluation of risk factors for liver enzyme elevation, HIV Med, 5, 334, 10.1111/j.1468-1293.2004.00232.x · doi:10.1111/j.1468-1293.2004.00232.x
  3. Wang, 2020, Clinical characteristics of 138 hospitalized patients with 2019 novel coronavirus-infected pneumonia in Wuhan, China, JAMA, 10.1001/jama.2020.1585 · DOI · Paper page

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Metadata

Authors
Cai, Q., Huang, D., Yu, H., Zhu, Z., Xia, Z., Su, Y., Li, Z., Zhou, G., Gou, J., Qu, J., Sun, Y., Liu, Y., He, Q., Chen, J., Liu, L., & Xu, L.
Venue
Journal of Hepatology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2020-09
Volume
73
Issue
3
Pages
566-574
ISSN
0168-8278 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3015221761
Cited by
1,047
References
31
FWCI
27.86
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
bronze
Licence
  • www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
  • www.elsevier.com/legal/tdmrep-license (tdm)
Funders
National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases (SZSM201612014)

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: COVID-19: Abnormal liver function tests. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1016/j.jhep.2020.04.006
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Cai, Q., Huang, D., Yu, H., Zhu, Z., Xia, Z., Su, Y., Li, Z., Zhou, G., Gou, J., Qu, J., Sun, Y., Liu, Y., He, Q., Chen, J., Liu, L., & Xu, L. (2020). COVID-19: Abnormal liver function tests. Journal of Hepatology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhep.2020.04.006

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