It is important to predict the severity of COVID-19 during the pandemic. Both Neutrophil Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR) andAbsolute Lymphocyte Count (ALC) are two easy, low-cost, and fast inflammatory markers, which positively correlate with theseverity of COVID-19. The purpose of this research was to analyze the value of NLR and ALC as predictors of COVID-19severity. This research was a retrospective study using medical record data of 376 COVID-19 patients duringApril-September 2020 at the Hasanuddin University Hospital and Makassar City Regional Hospital. Patients were classifiedinto non-severe and severe COVID-19. Neutrophil lymphocyte ratio and ALC values were determined based on routineblood test (Sysmex XS-800i) results, statistical analysis using Independent T-test, while NLR and ALC diagnostic values wereanalyzed with Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) curve to obtain the cut-off value, p < 0.05 was significant. Thesamples consisted of 372 non-severe and 49 severe COVID-19 patients. Neutrophil lymphocyte ratio value in non-severe(4.02±5.22) was significantly different from severe COVID-19 (9.81±7.06) (p < 0.001), similar to ALC in non-severe(2.00±0.83x103/μL) and severe COVID-19 (1.22±0.78x103/μL) (p < 0.001). Receiver operating characteristics curve showedthat NLR had a sensitivity of 91.8% and specificity of 66.4% with a cut-off ≥ 3.17 with Negative Predict Value (NPV) of 98.2%and Positive Predict Value (PPV) of 29.0%; while ALC had a sensitivity of 81.6% and specificity of 64.8% at cut-off≤ 1.74x103/μL with NPV of 95.9% and PPV of 25.8%. Increased NLR and decreased ALC in severe COVID-19 patientsoccurred due to an increased inflammatory response resulting in a decreased cellular immunity. Receiver operatingcharacteristics curve showed a cut-off for NLR of 3.17 and ALC of 1.74x103/μL, indicating an optimum sensitivity andspecificity. It was concluded that NLR and ALC can be used as predictors of COVID-19 severity with a cut-off ≥ 3.17 and≤ 1.74x103/μL, respectively.

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We examined mutations in the forkhead transcription factor gene, FOXL2, in three members of a Japanese family with autosomal dominant blepharophimosis-ptosis-epicanthus inversus syndrome (BPES) and in 100 healthy controls. The FOXL2 was analyzed by direct genomic sequencing. A novel 17-bp deletion at nucleotides 1092-1108 in FOXL2 was found in the three affected patients. No mutation was found in any of the 100 healthy controls. The 17-bp deletion in FOXL2 may be involved in the pathogenesis of BPES in Japanese patients.

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The COVID-19 incidence is increasing around the world. Some countries are experiencing worsening conditions, evendeaths. One coagulation marker that noticeably increases in COVID-19 patients is D-dimer. This study aimed to analyzeD-dimer levels of COVID-19 patients. Retrospective study using medical records of 84 COVID-19 patients, conducted fromApril to August 2020 at UNHAS Hospital. Patients were grouped based on the severity of the disease as non-severe andsevere. D-dimer levels were measured using the Alere Triage® D-dimer with the fluorescent immunoassay method. Thestatistical test used was Mann-Whitney, D-dimer prognostic levels were calculated with ROC analysis to get the cut-off.Significant if the p < of 0.05. The sample consisted of 74 non-severe and ten severe COVID-19 patients, mostly in the 30-39age group. D-dimer levels in non-severe (0.31±0.38 μg/L) significantly differ from severe group (3.09±2.56 μg/L) (p<0.001).The Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) curve showed D-dimer sensitivity and specificity of 90.0% and 89.2%,respectively at the ≥ 0.80 μg/L cut-off, Negative Predictive Value (NPV) of 98.5%, and Positive Predictive Value (PPV) of52.9%. D-dimer levels increased in severe COVID-19 patients due to an increased inflammatory response resulting inexcessive thrombin. The ROC D-dimer curve indicated a cut-off rate of 0.80 μg/L, providing optimal sensitivity andspecificity. D-dimer has a significant difference in non-severe and severe COVID-19 patients and shows good value todetermine the severity of COVID-19 disease with a cut-off value ≥ 0.80 μg /L.