Elevated C-reactive protein in early COVID-19 predicts worse survival among hospitalized geriatric patients.

Background: The objective of this cohort study was to determine whether elevated CRP in early COVID-19 was associated with 14-day mortality in geriatric patients.

Methods: Plasma CRP levels at hospital admission and 14-day all-cause mortality were assessed in geriatric inpatients hospitalized for COVID-19. Potential confounders were age, sex, functional abilities, history of malignancies, hypertension, cardiomyopathy, albuminemia, number of acute health issues, use of antibiotics and respiratory treatments.

Diagnostic Performances of Urinary Methylmalonic Acid/Creatinine Ratio in Vitamin B12 Deficiency.

Sole measurement of plasma vitamin B12 is no longer enough to identify vitamin B12 (B12) deficiency. When plasma vitamin B12 is in the low-normal range, especially between 201 and 350 ng/L, B12 deficiency should be assessed by measurements of plasma homocysteine and/or plasma methylmalonic acid (MMA). However, these biomarkers also accumulate during renal impairment, leading to a decreased specificity for B12 deficiency.