A recent study has found that immunophenotyping in patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) can predict the severity of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). According to the study, COVID-19 severity is associated with several risk factors, including sex, age, and comorbidities that correlate with immune responses during acute infection. CVD patients are susceptible to more severe outcomes of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, which can subsequently increase the risk of cardiac and pulmonary damage. The study evaluated critical immune system components to predict severe COVID-19 in CVD patients and identified altered innate and adaptive immune cell frequencies in these patients. The researchers also identified an immune signature characterized by a low frequency of mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) and intermediate effector CD8+ T-cells, as well as a high frequency of natural killer T (NKT) cells, which could be used to differentiate between high-risk CVD patients experiencing mild or severe COVID-19. Overall, understanding the immunologic dysfunctions underlying severe/fatal COVID-19 in CVD patients is imperative to improve care and clinical outcomes for this patient population.
