The association of preexisting severe asthma with COVID-19 outcomes

Abstract

Purpose of reviewThree years after the emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), many studies have examined the association between asthma and COVID-related morbidity and mortality, with most showing that asthma does not increase risk. However, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) currently suggests that patients with severe asthma may, nonetheless, be particularly vulnerable to COVID-19-related morbidity. Recent findingsWith respect to poor COVID-19 outcomes, our search yielded nine studies that quantified associations with severe asthma, seven that considered use of monoclonal antibodies (mAB), and 14 that considered inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) use. mAb and ICS use have been used as measures of severe asthma in several studies. Severe asthma was significantly associated with poor COVID-19 outcomes. The results for mAb and ICS were mixed.

Comorbid asthma decreased the risk for COVID-19 mortality in the United Kingdom: Evidence based on a meta-analysis

“…However, ICS in previous studies have not shown a clear or consistent association with COVID-19 outcomes [66] , [67] , [68] . Given the immunomodulatory effects of ICS and the controversial results, Terry et al recently found that ICS use in asthmatics was associated with decreased mortality in COVID-19 [69] . The above mentioned explanations, to a certain extent, illustrated the relationship between asthma and lower risk for death from COVID-19.…”