Elements and COVID-19: A Comprehensive Overview of Studies on Their Blood/Urinary Levels and Supplementation with an Update on Clinical Trials

Abstract

The current report provides a brief overview of the clinical features, hematological/biochemical abnormalities, biomarkers, and AI-related strategies in COVID-19; presents in a nutshell the pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapeutic options; and concisely summarizes the most important aspects related to sociodemographic and behavioral factors as well as comorbidities having an impact on this disease. It also gives a brief outline of the effect of selected elements on immune response and collects data on the levels of micro-/macro-elements and toxic metals in the blood/urine of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients and on supplementation with minerals in COVID-19 subjects. Moreover, this review provides an overview of clinical trials based on the use of minerals alone or in combination with other agents that can provide effective responses toward SARS-CoV-2 infection. The knowledge compiled in this report lays the groundwork for new therapeutic treatments and further research on biomarkers that should be as informative as possible about the patient’s condition and can provide more reliable information on COVID-19 course and prognosis. The collected results point to the need for clarification of the importance of mineral supplementation in COVID-19 and the relationships of the levels of some minerals with clinical improvement.

Interaction of Metals, Menopause and COVID-19—A Review of the Literature

“…The level of Mg was investigated in COVID-19 patients, and significantly lowered concentrations of Mg were noted in COVID-19 patients’ blood [ 97 ]. Due to the still limited number of studies, the efficacy of magnesium or zinc supplementation cannot be 100% confirmed, but its benefits far outweigh any adverse effects in the face of COVID-19 [ 102 , 103 , 104 ] and should be considered among vulnerable individuals, including menopausal women.…”

The concentrations of essential/toxic elements in serum of COVID-19 patients are not directly related to the severity of the disease

“…In spite of the tremendous amount of information published on various aspects of the COVID-19, data on the body levels of trace elements in this disease is rather scarce [26] , [27] , [28] , [35] , [40] , [44] , [45] . Our results disagree with some results of Zeng et al [35] , who determined the levels of a number of trace elements in whole blood samples of COVID-19 patients.…”

COVID-19 in Adult Patients with Hematological Malignancies—Lessons Learned after Three Years of Pandemic

“…To the best of our knowledge, there are no reports dedicated to the association between the incidence and outcome of COVID-19, the efficacy of anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccination and both trace and macro-elements in patients with HM. It may, however, be anticipated that as in a general patient population, changes in the concentrations of certain elements can be more exacerbated in subjects who develop a severe form of COVID-19 compared to those with non-severe COVID-19 and in deceased patients in comparison to survivors, as it was reported by Ścibior et al [ 155 ]. Although not routinely taken into consideration, zinc (Zn) supplementation could potentially be considered in COVID-19 patients, including those with hematological malignancies, as an adjunct therapy.…”