The role of laboratory testing in hospitalised and critically ill COVID-19-positive patients

S Omar¹, D Baker², R Siebert³, I Joubert⁴, B Levy⁵, F Paruk⁶, P D Gopalan⁷

Affiliations

¹ Intensive Care Unit, Division of Critical Care, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand and Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Johannesburg, South Africa.
² Department of Adult Critical Care, Livingstone Tertiary Hospital and Faculty of Health Sciences, Walter Sisulu University, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
³ Life Groenkloof Hospital, Tshwane, South Africa.
⁴ Division of Critical Care, Department of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Groote Schuur Hospital and University of Cape Town, South Africa.
⁵ Intensive Care, Netcare Rosebank Hospital, Johannesburg, South Africa.
⁶ Critical Care Department, Steve Biko Academic Hospital and University of Pretoria, South Africa.
⁷ Discipline of Anaesthesiology and Critical Care, Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.

PMID: 37359056
PMCID: PMC10289169
DOI: 10.7196/SAJCC.2020.v36i1.447

Review

The role of laboratory testing in hospitalised and critically ill COVID-19-positive patients

S Omar et al. South Afr J Crit Care. 2020.

. 2020 Jul 30;36(1):10.7196/SAJCC.2020.v36i1.447.

doi: 10.7196/SAJCC.2020.v36i1.447. eCollection 2020.

Authors

S Omar¹, D Baker², R Siebert³, I Joubert⁴, B Levy⁵, F Paruk⁶, P D Gopalan⁷

Affiliations

¹ Intensive Care Unit, Division of Critical Care, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand and Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Johannesburg, South Africa.
² Department of Adult Critical Care, Livingstone Tertiary Hospital and Faculty of Health Sciences, Walter Sisulu University, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
³ Life Groenkloof Hospital, Tshwane, South Africa.
⁴ Division of Critical Care, Department of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicine, Groote Schuur Hospital and University of Cape Town, South Africa.
⁵ Intensive Care, Netcare Rosebank Hospital, Johannesburg, South Africa.
⁶ Critical Care Department, Steve Biko Academic Hospital and University of Pretoria, South Africa.
⁷ Discipline of Anaesthesiology and Critical Care, Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.

PMID: 37359056
PMCID: PMC10289169
DOI: 10.7196/SAJCC.2020.v36i1.447

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed healthcare resources around the world under immense pressure. South Africa, given the condition of its healthcare system, is particularly vulnerable. There has been much discussion around rational healthcare utilisation, ranging from diagnostic testing and personal protective equipment to triage and appropriate use of ventilation strategies. There has, however, been little guidance around use of laboratory tests once COVID-19 positive patients have been admitted to hospital. We present a working guide to rational laboratory test use, specifically for COVID-19, among hospitalised patients, including the critically ill. The specific tests, the reasons for testing, their clinical usefulness, timing and frequency are addressed. We also provide a discussion around evidence for the use of these tests from a clinical perspective.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; coronavirus disease; diagnostics; laboratory tests.

Copyright © 2020, Omar et al. Copyright of published material remains in the Authors’ name. This allows authors to use their work for their own non-commercial purposes without seeking permission from the Publisher, subject to properly acknowledging the Journal as the original place of publication.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest: None.

Figures

**Fig. 1**
The multimodal role of the laboratory in COVID-19.

See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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The role of laboratory testing in hospitalised and critically ill COVID-19-positive patients

Affiliations

The role of laboratory testing in hospitalised and critically ill COVID-19-positive patients

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

Figures

References

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources

Full Text Sources

Miscellaneous