This study found that admission C-reactive protein (CRP) correlated with disease severity and tended to be a good predictor of adverse outcome.

• Data of COVID-19 patients with clinical outcome in a designated hospital in Wuhan, China, were retrospectively collected and analyzed from Jan 30 to Feb 20, 2020
• Out of 298 patients enrolled, 84 died and 214 recovered. Most non-survivors tended to be males, old aged, or with chronic diseases
• Compared to survivors, non-survivors showed significantly elevated:
  • White blood cell and neutrophil count
  • Neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR)
  • Systemic immune-inflammation index (SII, defined by platelet count multiply by NLR)
  • CRP
  • Procalcitonin
  • D-dimer
• Compared to survivors, non-survivors showed decreased:
  • Decreased red blood cell
  • Lymphocytes
  • Platelet count
• Age, neutrophil count, platelet count, and CRP were identified as independent predictors of adverse outcome, including in sub-group analyses of those with severe or critical illness
• Patients with markedly elevated admission CRP should be closely monitored, as this value performs well in discriminating disease severity and predicting adverse outcome in patients with COVID-19.