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. 2022 Aug;15(8):837-844.
doi: 10.1016/j.jiph.2022.06.014. Epub 2022 Jun 24.

Association of triglyceride-glucose index with prognosis of COVID-19: A population-based study

Yoonkyung Chang  1 , Jimin Jeon  2 , Tae-Jin Song  3 , Jinkwon Kim  4
Affiliations

Association of triglyceride-glucose index with prognosis of COVID-19: A population-based study

Yoonkyung Chang et al. J Infect Public Health. 2022 Aug.

Abstract

Background: Triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index is a simple and reliable surrogate marker for insulin resistance. Epidemiology studies have shown that insulin resistance is a risk factor for various infectious diseases. We evaluated the prognostic value of TyG index measured before the COVID-19 infection in COVID-19 infected patients.

Methods: From a nationwide COVID-19 cohort dataset in Korea, we included COVID-19 patients diagnosed between Jan and Jun 2020. Based on the nationwide health screening data between 2015 and 2018, TyG index was calculated as ln [triglyceride (mg/dL) × fasting glucose level (mg/dL)/2]. Primary outcome is development of severe complications of COVID-19 defined as composite of mechanical ventilation, intensive care unit care, high-flow oxygen therapy, and mortality within two months after the diagnosis of COVID-19.

Results: This study included 3887 patients with COVID-19 confirmed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Mean ± standard deviation of TyG index was 8.54 ± 0.61. Severe complications of COVID-19 were noted in 289 (7.44%) patients. In the multivariate logistic regression, TyG index was positively associated with severe complications of COVID-19 (adjusted odds ratio: 1.42, 95% confidence interval [1.12-1.79]).

Conclusions: In COVID-19 infected patients, high TyG index was associated with increased risk for severe complications. TyG index might be useful predictor for the severity of COVID-19 infection.

Keywords: COVID-19; Glucose; Insulin resistance; Triglyceride-glucose index.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flowchart depicting patient inclusion and exclusion. COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019; RT-PCR, real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Distribution of triglyceride-glucose index according to presence of severe complications of COVID-19. Vertical dotted lines present the mean values of triglyceride-glucose index in each groups with and without severe complications of COVID-19.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Spline curve of the association between triglyceride-glucose index and severe complications of COVID-19. The black lines and gray shadows represent the odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals for the presence of severe complications of COVID-19 (composite of mechanical ventilation, intensive care unit care, high-flow oxygen therapy, and mortality). Ref indicates median value (8.49) of triglyceride-glucose index. TyG, triglyceride-glucose index; CI: confidence interval.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Triglyceride-glucose index on the severe complications of COVID-19 in each subgroup by risk factor. Data include odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for triglyceride-glucose index derived from logistic regression model for presence of severe complications in COVID-19 patients. P-values for interaction are calculated between each risk factor and triglyceride-glucose index.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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