Document Type
Article
Publication Date
7-1-2022
Publication Title
Cureus
Keywords
ace-2 receptor, covid-19, diabetes, dyslipidemia, hypertension, metabolic syndrome (mets), obesity, obesity paradox, overweight, sars-cov-2
ISSN
2168-8184
Volume
14
Issue/No.
7
First Page
e27438
Abstract
Although severe cases and mortality of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are proportionally infrequent, these cases are strongly linked to patients with conditions of metabolic syndrome (obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia). However, the pathophysiology of COVID-19 in relation to metabolic syndrome is not well understood. Thus, the goal of this secondary literature review was to examine the relationship between severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS-CoV-2) infection and the individual conditions of metabolic syndrome. The objective of this secondary literature review was achieved by examining primary studies, case studies, and other secondary studies, to obtain a comprehensive perspective of theories and observations of COVID-19 etiology with metabolic syndrome. The most extensive research was available on the topics of diabetes, hypertension, and obesity, which yielded multiple (and sometimes conflicting) hypothetical pathophysiology. The sources on dyslipidemia and COVID-19 were scarcer and failed to provide an equally comprehensive image, highlighting the need for further research. It was concluded that hypertension had the strongest correlation with COVID-19 incidence (followed by obesity), yet the causative pathophysiology was ambiguous; most likely related to cardiovascular, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2)-related complications from renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) imbalance. Obesity was also positively correlated to the severity of COVID-19 cases and was believed to contribute to mechanical difficulties with respiration, in addition to hypothetical connections with the expression of ACE-2 on abundant adipose tissue. Diabetes was believed to contribute to COVID-19 severity by producing a chronic inflammatory state and interfering with neutrophil and T-cell function. Furthermore, there were indications that COVID-19 may induce acute-onset diabetes and diabetic ketoacidosis. Lastly, dyslipidemia was concluded to potentially facilitate SARS-CoV-2 infection by enhancing lipid rafts and immunosuppressive functions. There were also indications that cholesterol levels may have prognostic indications and that statins may have therapeutic benefits.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
NSUWorks Citation
Makhoul, Elias; Aklinski, Joseph L.; Miller, Jesse; Leonard, Cara; Backer, Sean; Kahar, Payal; Parmar, Mayur S.; and Khanna, Deepesh, "A Review of COVID-19 in Relation to Metabolic Syndrome: Obesity, Hypertension, Diabetes, and Dyslipidemia" (2022). HPD Articles. 6.
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_facarticles/6
ORCID ID
0000-0003-4970-9857
DOI
10.7759/cureus.27438
Copyright
Copyright © 2022, Makhoul et al.
