The following is the summary of “A retrospective study regarding the influence of COVID-19 disease on asthma” published in the January 2023 issue of Pulmonary medicine by Muntean, et al.
Patients with asthma voiced numerous concerns during the Covid-19 pandemic about the possible effects of COVID-19 sickness on their existing condition. Asthmatics do not appear to be at higher risk of contracting a severe form of COVID-19, according to the 2021 GINA study. The patients in this retrospective asthma study were evaluated using the Asthma Control Test (ACT) and the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) before and after contracting the COVID-19 virus. The median age of the patients was 27.8 years, and the male-to-female ratio was 1:1.26. Patients who scored 20 or higher on the ACT were classified as having well-controlled asthma.
Overall, 22.7% of our asthma patients were found to have COVID-19 disease (21.5% in the controlled asthma group and 24.5% in the uncontrolled asthma group), according to their COVID-19 evaluation. Those with uncontrolled asthma had a higher average duration of asthmatic symptoms (128 96.8 months vs. 296 59.7 months, P<0.05). Allergen immunotherapy was used to treat 18.4% (30 pts) of the patients with asthma, in accordance with the GINA guideline. Treatment Steps 1 and 5 saw a statistically significant increase in the proportion of uncontrolled patients (P=0.05 and P=0.03, respectively). Individuals at GINA step 5 had asthma exacerbations that were typically twice as severe as those experienced by patients at GINA steps 1-4 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Increased use of oral corticosteroids was also associated with exacerbated asthma symptoms and a higher ACT score (P=0.03) and VAS scale (P=0.02) in this patient population with COVID-19 illness. Consistently good asthma management should lessen the likelihood of serious complications following infection with COVID-19. Asthma patients found it reassuring to talk to the professional handling their care over the phone, proving the need for incorporating communication channels, including phone calls, smartphone applications, and online evaluations and counseling, into the long-term management of chronic conditions.
Source: bmcpulmmed.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12890-023-02309-7