Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is often associated with interstitial pneumonia. However, there is insufficient knowledge on the presence of autoimmune serological markers in patients with COVID-19. We analyzed the presence and role of autoantibodies in patients with COVID-19-associated pneumonia. We prospectively studied 33 consecutive patients with COVID-19, 31 (94%) of whom had interstitial pneumonia, and 25 age-and sex-matched patients with fever and/or pneumonia with etiologies other than COVID-19 as the pathological control group. All patients were tested for the presence of antinuclear antibodies (ANAs), antiantiphospholipid antibodies (APLs), and anti-cytoplasmic neutrophil antibodies (ANCAs). Clinical, biochemical, and radiological parameters were also collected. Fifteen of 33 (45%) patients tested positive for at least one autoantibody, including 11 who tested positive for ANAs (33%), 8 who tested positive for anti-cardiolipin antibodies (IgG and/or IgM) (24%), and 3 who tested positive for anti-β2-glycoprotein antibodies (IgG and/or IgM) (9%). ANCA reactivity was not detected in any patient. Patients that tested positive for autoantibodies had a significantly more severe prognosis than other patients did: 6 of 15 (40%) patients with autoantibodies died due to COVID-19 complications during hospitalization, whereas only 1 of 18 (5.5%) patients who did not have autoantibodies died (p = 0.03). Patients with poor prognosis (death due to COVID-19 complications) had a significantly higher respiratory rate at admission (23 breaths per minute vs. 17 breaths per minute; p = 0.03) and a higher frequency of autoantibodies (86% vs. 27%; p = 0.008). In conclusion, autoantibodies are frequently detected in patients with COVID-19 possibly reflecting a pathogenetic role of immune dysregulation. However, given the small number of patients, the association of autoantibodies with an unfavorable prognosis requires further multicenter studies.

One of the challenges that emerged during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and is still relevant today is the need to identify patients with acute respiratory failure (ARF) who could benefit from conventional oxygen therapy (COT) -oxygen supplementation with nasal cannulas, Venturi masks, and non-rebreather masks -without recurring to advanced respiratory therapy, such as high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC), continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), non-invasive ventilation (NIV), or invasive mechanical ventilation. The aim of the study was to develop a clinical tool able to predict the failure of COT in COVID-19 patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) with ARF. This was a retrospective monocentric cohort study carried out in the ED of the University Hospital of Bologna Sant'Orsola-Malpighi Polyclinic, Italy. The cohort comprised 101 COVID-19 patients with ARF from the first pandemic wave who received COT. This cohort was used to develop a scale that considers serum lactate concentration, partial arterial oxygen pressure/inspired oxygen fraction (PaO 2 /FiO 2 ) ratio, and body temperature to predict COT failure, referred to as the Lactate, Oxygenation, and Temperature (LOT) score. The highest possible score was 17 points. The LOT score was associated with COT failure (area under the receiver operating curve or AUROC = 0.79, 95% CI 0.69 -0.89, p < 0.001); the cut-off value of > 5 points had optimal predictive power and showed significantly higher 30-day mortality (log-rank χ 2 = 28,828, p < 0.0001). The LOT score was able to effectively predict COT failure in COVID-19 patients with ARF. Patients with LOT score > 5 had a very high risk of therapy failure, and more advanced respiratory therapies must be considered in these patients.