PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Izquierdo, José Luis
AU  - Almonacid, Carlos
AU  - González, Yolanda
AU  - Del Rio-Bermúdez, Carlos
AU  - Ancochea, Julio
AU  - Cárdenas, Remedios
AU  - Soriano, Joan B
TI  - The Impact of COVID-19 on Patients with Asthma
AID  - 10.1183/13993003.03142-2020
DP  - 2020 Jan 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - 2003142
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/early/2020/10/22/13993003.03142-2020.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/early/2020/10/22/13993003.03142-2020.full
AB  - Background An association between the severity of COVID-19 and the presence of certain chronic conditions has been suggested. However, unlike influenza and other viruses, the disease burden in patients with asthma has been less evident.Objective To understand the impact of COVID-19 in patients with asthma.Methods Using big data analytics and artificial intelligence through the SAVANA Manager® clinical platform, we analysed clinical data from patients with asthma from January 1st to May 10th, 2020.Results Out of 71 182 patients with asthma, 1006 (1.41%) suffered from COVID-19. Compared to asthmatic individuals without COVID-19, patients with asthma and COVID-19 were significantly older (55 versus 42 years), predominantly female (66% versus 59%), smoked more frequently, and had higher prevalence of hypertension, dyslipidemias, diabetes, and obesity. Allergy-related factors such as rhinitis and eczema were less common in asthmatic patients with COVID-19 (p<.001). Higher prevalence of these comorbidities was also observed in patients with COVID-19 who required hospital admission. The use of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) was lower in patients who required hospitalisation due to COVID-19, as compared to non-hospitalised patients (48.3% versus 61.5%; OR: 0.58: 95% CI 0.44–0.77). Although patients treated with biologics (n=865; 1.21%) showed increased severity and more comorbidities at the ENT level, COVID-19-related hospitalisations in these patients were relatively low (0.23%).Conclusion Patients with asthma and COVID-19 were older and at increased risk due to comorbidity-related factors. ICS and biologics are generally safe and may be associated with a protective effect against severe COVID-19 infection.The increased risk for hospitalisation due to COVID-19 in patients with asthma is largely associated with age and related comorbidities. ICS and biologics may be associated with a protective effect against the most severe manifestations of COVID-19.