AI Article Synopsis
- Patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) may experience more severe outcomes from COVID-19, and this study looked at how their immunosuppressive therapy (IST) affects both the risk of infection and the severity of the disease.
- Analysis of data from the German myasthenia gravis registry revealed that out of 1379 patients, 95 contracted COVID-19, with a significant portion (76%) already on IST.
- The results indicated that while IST did not increase the risk of contracting COVID-19, it was linked to a higher likelihood of hospitalization or death among those infected, highlighting the need for prevention strategies in this vulnerable population.*
Article Abstract
Background: Patients with myasthenia gravis (MG) are potentially prone for a severe COVID-19 course, but there are limited real-world data available on the risk associated with COVID-19 for patients with MG. Here, we investigate whether current immunosuppressive therapy (IST) influences the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and COVID-19 severity.
Methods: Data from the German myasthenia gravis registry were analyzed from May 2020 until June 2021 and included patient demographics, MG disease duration, comorbidities, current IST use, COVID-19 characteristics, and outcomes. Propensity score matching was employed to match MG patients with IST to those without, and multivariable binary logistic regression models were used to determine associations between IST with (1) symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection and (2) severe COVID-19 course, as measured by hospitalization or death.
Results: Of 1379 patients with MG, 95 (7%) patients (mean age 58 (standard deviation [SD] 18) presented with COVID-19, of which 76 (80%) received IST at time of infection. 32 patients (34%) were hospitalized due to COVID-19; a total of 11 patients (12%) died. IST was a risk factor for hospitalization or death in the group of COVID-19-affected MG patients (odds ratio [OR] 3.04, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.02-9.06, p = 0.046), but current IST was not associated with a higher risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection itself.
Discussion: In this national MG cohort study, current IST use was a risk factor for a severe disease course of COVID-19 but not for SARS-CoV-2 infection itself. These data support the consequent implementation of effective strategies to prevent COVID-19 in this high-risk group.
Trial Registration Information: German clinical trial registry ( https://www.drks.de ), DRKS00024099, first patient enrolled: February 4th, 2019.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9512984 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00415-022-11389-0 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Country-specific key lifestyle factors and health outcomes for resource allocation in the general population: a network analysis across 29 countries.
J Glob Health
January 2025
Medical-surgical Nursing Department, Faculty of Nursing, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
Background: We aimed to identify the central lifestyle, the most impactful among lifestyle factor clusters; the central health outcome, the most impactful among health outcome clusters; and the bridge lifestyle, the most strongly connected to health outcome clusters, across 29 countries to optimise resource allocation for local holistic health improvements.
Methods: From July 2020 to August 2021, we surveyed 16 461 adults across 29 countries who self-reported changes in 18 lifestyle factors and 13 health outcomes due to the pandemic. Three networks were generated by network analysis for each country: lifestyle, health outcome, and bridge networks.
Measuring Self-Reported Well-Being of Physicians Using the Well-Being Thermometer: Cohort Study.
JMIR Form Res
January 2025
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Sheffield, United Kingdom.
Background: Advancements in medical science have focused largely on patient care, often overlooking the well-being of health care professionals (HCPs). This oversight has consequences; not only are HCPs prone to mental and physical health challenges, but the quality of patient care may also endure as a result. Such concerns are also exacerbated by unprecedented crises like the COVID-19 pandemic.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStrategies to Increase Response Rate and Reduce Nonresponse Bias in Population Health Research: Analysis of a Series of Randomized Controlled Experiments during a Large COVID-19 Study.
JMIR Public Health Surveill
January 2025
School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.
Background: High response rates are needed in population-based studies, as nonresponse reduces effective sample size and bias affects accuracy and decreases the generalizability of the study findings.
Objective: We tested different strategies to improve response rate and reduce nonresponse bias in a national population-based COVID-19 surveillance program in England, United Kingdom.
Methods: Over 19 rounds, a random sample of individuals aged 5 years and older from the general population in England were invited by mail to complete a web-based questionnaire and return a swab for SARS-CoV-2 testing.
COVID scientists as rhetorical citizens: Persuasive op-eds and public debate over science policy.
Public Underst Sci
January 2025
University of Washington, USA.
To discover the means of persuasion available to experts who embrace the responsibility of public communication in times of crisis, this study uses a text/countertext method of rhetorical analysis on U.S. newspaper editorials by scientists writing about COVID-19 policy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPost-Telemedicine Acute Care for Undifferentiated High-Acuity Conditions: Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words?
Telemed J E Health
January 2025
Kaiser Permanente Division of Research, Pleasanton, California, USA.
Telemedicine use increased substantially with the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding of the impact of telemedicine modality (video vs. phone) on post-telemedicine acute care for higher risk conditions is limited.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWant AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!