Linking lactate dehydrogenase to the severity of COVID-19 cannot ignore the employed methodology

We read with interest the paper by Henry et al. [1], who, through a pooled analysis of available studies, supports the evidence that lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) measurements in serum can be a significant predictor of severity and mortality in COVID-19 patients [2]. The link between LDH levels and the COVID-19 severity may reflect both the direct lung injury and more widespread tissue damage [3,4]. This association was analyzed in 9 published studies. Although the information provided by these studies is potentially relevant for guiding patient care and permitting early identification of subjects at high risk of death or of developing severe disease, its practical implication and transferability among different health care locations is compromised by the fact that no studies discussed how their assays used to determine LDH comply with the available internationally agreed reference measurement system and therefore if they provided results standardized enough to allow the universal application of suggested decision thresholds [2,5].
Source: The American Journal of Emergency Medicine - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Source Type: research