Pentraxin 3: possibilities and prospects for using a biomarker in patients with COVID-19

Objective: to determine the potential predictive value of serum biomarkers for adverse cardiovascular events in post-COVID-19 patients. Materials and Methods. The prospective study included 114 patients hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19. In addition to standard examinations, blood samples were collected on the day of admission to determine levels of serum cardiovascular biomarkers, including pentraxin 3 (PTX3). Patients were monitored for 366 [365; 380] days after discharge from the COVID-19 hospital with registration of all major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) that developed. Results. During follow-up, we observed MACE in 19 patients (16.7%), including 2 deaths (1.8%) from cardiovascular causes. The incidence of MACE was higher in patients with higher concentrations of PTX3 (OR 1.28, 95% CI 1.13-1.45; p<0.001), interleukin 6 (OR 1.01, 95 % CI 1.0-1.02; p=0.048), D-dimer (OR 2.05, 95% CI 1.16-3.6; p=0.019), lactate dehydrogenase (OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.03-1.13; p<0.001), and MB fraction of creatine kinase (OR 1.19, 95% CI 1.02-1.39; p=0.001). PTX3˃3.1 ng/mL predicted the development of MACE with a sensitivity of 94.0% and specificity of 82.1% (AUC 0.885; p<0.001). Conclusion. Serum biomarkers, in particular PTX3, can be used to predict the development of MACE in the long-term follow-up of post-COVID-19 patients.