Evaluation of oxidative stress markers in Rwanda during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: a cross-sectional study

SARS-CoV-2 is mainly described as endothelial dysfunction, and due to the bidirectional link between oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction, we initiated a program directed to the evaluation of the oxidative status of the population of Rwanda by measuring spectrophotometrically their plasma Reactive Oxygen Metabolites (dROMs) and Plasma Antioxidant Potential (PAT). The reference population was chosen to reflect the absence of actual or past SARS-CoV-2 infections as well as other clinically established infective status and reference intervals for d-ROM and PAT were identified.

The average d-ROM was 378.6 UCARR with a standard deviation of 105.2. The average PAT value was 2853.6, with a standard deviation of 635.7 UCOR. On the basis of the published values for the Caucasian and East Asian populations, the average value of d-ROM obtained in Rwanda was significantly higher than expected. Conversely, the average PAT value was at the upper limit according to the averaged values for healthy Caucasian populations. The results of this study, the first so far reported on a sub-Saharan population, can effectively be used as a baseline value for clinical management of inflammatory conditions, for the stratification of at-risk individuals and to inform recommendations for effective use of public health resources.