In the COVID-19 pandemic, the medical protection of chronic disease patients, hemodialysis patients, cancer patients and other groups needs to be of great concern. At the same time, the risk of these patients themselves when infected with the virus also deserves vigilance and attention.
A study jointly conducted by Imperial College London, the University of Edinburgh and the UK's Office for National Statistics showed that children and adults with severe asthma or poorly controlled asthma are at greater risk of hospitalization after COVID-19. The study also notes that children and adults with mild or well-controlled asthma do not have an increased risk of severe COVID-19 illness.
The study, published in the journal Thorax, is the largest study of its kind on the relationship between asthma and COVID-19, including data from nearly 80% of adults and more than 75% of children aged 12-17 in the UK. The research team used anonymous information from the 2011 England Census and combined general practice data, hospital statistics and registered deaths between January 2020 and September 2021.
They note that asthma is a long-term condition that often requires ongoing treatment. In the UK alone, millions of people are affected by the disease.
The study found that among adults, people who inhaled low-dose steroids to treat asthma were not more likely to be hospitalized or die from COVID-19 compared to those without asthma. However, adults who inhale medium- or high-dose steroids are about 50% more likely to need hospitalization for COVID-19 and are also more likely to die from COVID-19.
In addition, among children aged 12-17 years, children receiving oral steroids for asthma more than doubled their risk of hospitalization for COVID-19. For children who have taken oral steroids twice or more, this risk is three to four times higher.
Professor Jennifer Quint, corresponding author of the study and national cardiopulmonary institute at Imperial College, said: "Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been several studies looking at the risk of COVID-19 for people with asthma, but the findings are not always clear or consistent. Studies like ours, using large amounts of data, can help disassemble any risk pattern. ”
She concludes, "We found that children and adults with asthma who had well-controlled mild or low doses of the drug were no more at risk than those without asthma. But adults and children with severe or poorly controlled asthma are more likely to need hospitalization, and in adults, the risk of death associated with COVID-19 increases. ”
Quint stressed that knowing these differences is important to help people with asthma as COVID-19 persists. "Adults can take precautions such as getting the COVID-19 vaccine and getting asthma treatment. The risk is still relatively low for children, but their asthma should also be controlled as well as possible. ”