Blood Test Combining IL-6 and Neutrophil Levels Predicts COVID-19 Death

A new exploratory analysis using data from the COMMUNITY phase 3 randomized trial suggests a simple blood test could strongly predict COVID-19 mortality. Researchers combined baseline levels of interleukin-6, an inflammatory signaling molecule, with the proportion of neutrophils to create a composite score on a 100-point scale. Patients scoring at or below 72.1 showed an estimated hazard ratio for death of 14.3 (95% CI 4.1 to 49.3, p<0.0001), roughly 14 times the mortality risk compared with those scoring higher. The discrimination was stronger than two established clinical assessment tools. The analysis was published in Advances in Therapy.