Risk of COVID-19 infection in MS and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders.
Neurol Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm
; 7(5)2020 09.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-528611
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
Disease-modifying drugs (DMDs) may alter the immune status and thus increase the susceptibility to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in patients with MS or neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD). However, evidence supporting this notion is currently lacking. In this study, we conducted a survey on the risk of COVID-19 in patients with MS and NMOSD.METHODS:
The survey was conducted through the Chinese Medical Network for Neuroinflammation. Patients in 10 MS centers from 8 cities including Wuhan were included. Information about MS and NMOSD disease duration and the usage of DMDs were collected. Data of suspected cases of COVID-19 were obtained from hospital visits, questionnaires, and patient self-reporting. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection was confirmed through clinical evaluation by a panel of experts in conjunction with chest CT and viral RNA detection.RESULTS:
Eight hundred eighty-two of 1,804 (48.89%) patients with MS and 2,129 of 3,060 (69.58%) patients with NMOSD were receiving DMDs. There were no alterations in the patients' DMD regimen during January 15, 2020, to March 15, 2020, the 3-month period. None of the patients with MS treated with DMDs had COVID-19. However, 2 patients with relapsing NMOSD were diagnosed with COVID-19-related pneumonia. After treatment, both patients recovered from pneumonia and neither patient experienced new attacks due to predisposing SARS-CoV-2 infection in the following 2 months.CONCLUSIONS:
No increased risk of COVID-19 infection was observed in patients with MS or NMOSD, irrespective of whether these patients received DMDs. A battery of stringent preventive measures adopted by neurologists to reduce COVID-19 infection in these patients may have contributed to low risk of COVID-19 infection.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Pneumonia, Viral
/
Neuromyelitis Optica
/
Coronavirus Infections
/
Immunosuppressive Agents
/
Multiple Sclerosis
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
Asia
Language:
English
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
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