New Study Finds That COVID-19 Thrombosis Behaves Differently from Normal Blood Clot Cases
Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team May 07, 2025 15 hours, 8 minutes ago
Medical News: COVID-19 Linked to Unique Blood Clot Patterns
A new study from Spanish researchers has revealed that thromboembolic events—or blood clots that travel through the bloodstream—occur differently in people hospitalized with COVID-19 than in those without the virus. The study examined how various blood markers related to inflammation, liver and kidney function, and clotting behaved in patients with and without COVID-19 who experienced these dangerous events.
New Study Finds That COVID-19 Thrombosis Behaves Differently from Normal Blood Clot Cases
This
Medical News report highlights findings from 663 patients hospitalized between January 2020 and October 2022 at Torrecárdenas University Hospital in Almería, Spain. Of the patients, 63 had COVID-19 while the remaining 600 did not. The researchers, from both the hospital and the University of Almería’s Faculty of Health Sciences, analyzed lab values like ferritin, D-dimer, ALT (a liver enzyme), troponin I (a heart marker), and creatinine to uncover hidden patterns.
COVID-19 Blood Clots Show Higher Inflammation and Liver Activity
Patients with COVID-19 who developed thromboembolic events had higher levels of inflammatory markers—particularly ferritin—and liver enzyme ALT compared to non-COVID patients. This suggests COVID-related clots may involve more systemic inflammation and liver damage.
Curiously, heart stress marker troponin I was higher in non-COVID-19 patients. Meanwhile, COVID-19 patients who did not require ICU care had surprisingly higher D-dimer levels—an indicator of blood clot formation—than those who did require intensive care, hinting at unusual disease behavior.
On the other hand, kidney function remained relatively unaffected in both groups, though COVID-19 patients in ICU surprisingly showed better glomerular filtration rates (GFR), a key kidney health measure. Researchers suggest this might reflect better intensive care management, such as optimized fluid balance and use of blood thinners.
Differences Between Arterial and Venous Clot Events
When breaking down the clot locations, the study found that COVID-19 patients with arterial clots had more signs of inflammation, such as higher ALT, ferritin, and troponin I levels, compared to non-COVID patients. But in venous clot cases, platelet counts were significantly higher in COVID-19 patients—possibly reflecting an overactive immune or clotting response.
Despite these differences, the commonly used D-dimer test did not show clear separation between COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 cases, underscoring the complexity of diagnosing COVID-related clots using conventional tools.
Sex Differences and Immune Complications
Men with COVID-19 had a significantly higher risk of needing ICU care, pointing to biological sex as a factor in disease severity. The study also underscored the role of pla
telets—not just in clotting but as active players in the immune response. Ferritin, another key marker, was higher in severe COVID-19 cases and appeared closely tied to inflammation and potential clot formation.
Moreover, correlations between markers such as IL-6 (an inflammatory cytokine) and fibrinogen were found in non-COVID patients, suggesting traditional pathways of clot formation differ from those in COVID-19, which seems to trigger unique immunothrombotic mechanisms.
Conclusions and Clinical Implications
This research shows that thromboembolic events in COVID-19 patients are not the same as in those without the virus. COVID-19 seems to promote a distinct type of clotting behavior linked to inflammation, liver stress, and immune activation. These differences could impact how doctors monitor and treat blood clots in infected patients. Standard blood tests like D-dimer might not always provide reliable signals in COVID cases, making deeper biomarker analysis crucial.
Clinicians may need to adopt more individualized approaches when handling thromboembolic risks in COVID-19 patients. Understanding these biological differences can help improve patient outcomes and refine treatment strategies.
The study findings were published in the peer reviewed Journal of Clinical Medicine.
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/14/9/3192
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