Prediabetes and COVID-19 severity, an underestimated risk factor: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background and aims: The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has rapidly spread through the whole globe. Since the beginning of the outbreak, some individuals were more likely to manifest more severe outcomes. Diabetic patients were of that sort; however, the severity of COVID-19 in prediabetic ones remained less identified. This study aimed to systematically review and conduct a meta-analysis of the previously published observational studies investigating the severity of COVID-19 in prediabetic patients. Methods: Medline/PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane library, and google scholar databases were queried to identify relevant studies concerning prediabetes and serious COVID-19 outcomes. The Newcastle-Ottawa scale was used to assess the quality of the included studies. Odds ratio (OR) and 95 confidence interval (CI) were used to evaluate the likelihood of severe presentations in prediabetic patients. Results: A total of 3027 patients were included in the meta-analysis. A random-effects model was used regarding the high heterogeneity (I-2 = 55). Prediabetes was significantly associated with adverse outcomes of COVID-19 with an OR of 2.58 (95CI, 1.46-4.56). Conclusion: Prediabetes could act as a risk factor for the severity of COVID-19. Early detection of prediabetic patients might be helpful to adopt preventive and protective strategies to improve the prognosis of the infected individuals. (C) 2021 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of Diabetes India.