COVID-19 Infection in Hidradenitis Suppurativa Patients: A Retrospective Study

Abstract

<b><i>Introduction:</i></b> Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is associated with comorbidities that are risk factors for severe COVID-19 infection. We evaluated demographics and COVID-19 outcomes in HS patients. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> HS patients with COVID-19 (HS+/COVID+) and a randomized age-, race-, and sex-matched control population of patients without HS with COVID-19 (HS−/COVID+) were selected through a retrospective chart review. Data were collected on demographics, medications, comorbidities, vaccination status, and COVID-19 treatment/outcomes. Fisher’s exact test was used to analyze the relationship between risk factors and COVID-19 outcomes. A <i>p</i> value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. <b><i>Results:</i></b> There were 58 HS+/COVID+ patients, primarily African American (83%, <i>n</i> = 48) and female (88%, <i>n</i> = 51). Compared to HS+/COVID+ patients, HS−/COVID+ patients were significantly more likely to have cardiovascular disease (51% vs. 24%; <i>p</i> = 0.0029) and be pregnant (23% vs. 4%; <i>p</i> = 0.0093). HS+/COVID+ and HS−/COVID+ patients did not vary significantly in vaccination rate at time of COVID-19 diagnosis (6% vs. 5%; <i>p</i> = 0.78). HS−/COVID+ patients were significantly more likely to have COVID-19 complications (35% vs. 7%; <i>p</i> = 0.001) and receive COVID-19 treatment (37% vs. 7%; <i>p</i> = 0.0001) when compared to HS+/COVID+ patients. <b><i>Conclusion:</i></b> Our findings support the growing evidence that having HS itself may not be a risk factor for severe COVID-19 outcomes.

The Past, Present, Future: Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Human Skin Diseases

“…Risk factors include, but are not limited to family history as it can be inherited, age (between adolescence and 40 years), sex (females more likely), weight, stress, and even early squamous cell cancer and psoriasis. It remains unclear whether race is a risk factor, with various studies in support of this, such as Mokos et al (2023), and others that remain skeptical, such as Bryd et al (2023) [39][40][41][42][43][44].…”

The Past, Present, Future: Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Human Skin Diseases

“…Risk factors include but are not limited to age, sex, stress, and even early squamous cell cancer. It remains unclear whether race is a risk factor with various studies in support of it such as Mokos et al (2023) and others that remain skeptical such as Bryd et al (2023) [39][40][41][42][43][44].…”

Immune Dysregulation and Current Targeted Biologics in Hidradenitis Suppurativa

“…Additionally, viral infections such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) predispose patients to develop HS with the involvement of atypical sites, such as face or thighs [24]. However, no clear association was found between HS and COVID-19 infection [25].…”