Epicardial Adipose Tissue as a Prognostic Marker in COVID-19

Background/aim: Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) has been established as a quantitative imaging biomarker associated with the prognosis of several diseases, especially cardiovascular diseases. The cardiac injury by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) might be linked to the EAT. This study aimed to use this prognostic marker derived from computed tomography (CT) images to predict 30-day mortality in patients with COVID-19.

Patients and methods: Consecutive patients with COVID-19 were retrospectively screened between 2020 and 2022. Overall, 237 patients (78 female, 32.9%) were included in the present study. The study end-point was the 30-day mortality. EAT was measured using the diagnostic CT in a semiquantitative manner. EAT volume and density were measured for each patient.

Results: Overall, 70 patients (29.5%) died within the 30-day observation period and 143 patients (60.3%) were admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU). The mean EAT volume was 140.9±89.1 cm³ in survivors and 132.9±77.7 cm³ in non-survivors, p=0.66. The mean EAT density was -71.9±8.1 Hounsfield units (HU) in survivors, and -67.3±8.4 HU in non-survivors, p=0.0001. EAT density was associated with 30-day mortality (p<0.0001) and ICU admission (p<0.0001). EAT volume was not associated with mortality and/or ICU admission.

Conclusion: EAT density was associated with 30-day mortality and ICU admission in patients with COVID-19.