Presepsin value predicts the risk of developing severe/critical COVID-19 illness: results of a pooled analysis

We carried out a digital search in Medline (PubMed interface), Scopus, and Web of Science, using the keywords “presepsin” AND “coronavirus disease 2019” OR “COVID-19” OR “SARS-CoV-2” in all search fields, without applying date or language restrictions, finally selecting studies where presepsin values were measured and compared in at least five COVID-19 patients with or without severe/critical illness. The electronic search led to the inclusion of six studies, totaling 420 COVID-19 patients, 173 (41.2%) with a severe/critical form of illness. The results of our pooled analysis show a positive difference of presepsin values between patients with or without severe/critical COVID-19 illness in all six studies. The WMD of presepsin values in COVID-19 patients with severe/critical illness compared to those without was found to be 416.97 (95% CI, 125.03-708.90) ng/L using the quality effects model (heterogeneity, I2=95%), increasing further to 551.70 (95% CI, 309.45-793.94) ng/L with the random-effects model, respectively. Overall, presepsin values were found to be increased by 2.74-fold in COVID-19 patients with severe/critical illness compared to those without. In conclusion, our pooled analysis reveals that presepsin values are significantly higher (nearly 3-fold) in COVID-19 patients with severe/critical illness than in those without.