Asthma and COVID-19 risk: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Individual case series and cohort studies have reported conflicting results in people with asthma on the vulnerability to and risk of mortality from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
RESEARCH QUESTION: Are people with asthma at a higher risk of being infected or hospitalised or poorer clinical outcomes from COVID-19?
METHODS: A systematic review and meta-analysis based on five main databases including the World Health Organization COVID-19 database between 1 December 2019 and 11 July 2021 on studies with a control (non-asthma) group was conducted. Prevalence and risk ratios were pooled using Sidik-Jonkman random-effects meta-analyses.
FINDINGS: 51 studies with an 8.08% (95% CI 6.87-9.30%) pooled prevalence of people with asthma among COVID-19 positive cases. The risk ratios were 0.83 (95% CI 0.73-0.95, p=0.01) for acquiring COVID-19; 1.18 (95% CI 0.98-1.42, p=0.08) for hospitalisation; 1.21 (95% CI 0.97-1.51, p=0.09) for intensive care unit (ICU) admission; 1.06 (95% CI 0.82-1.36, p=0.65) for ventilator use; and 0.94 (95% CI 0.76-1.17, p=0.58) for mortality for people with asthma. Subgroup analyses by continent revealed a significant difference in risk of acquiring COVID-19, ICU admission, ventilator use and death between the continents.
INTERPRETATION: The risk of being infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 was reduced compared to the non-asthma group. No statistically significant differences in hospitalisation, ICU admission and…
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Evidence Hub reads this as a meta-analysis, done in people. Its evidence level is 1 of 5 (Highest · pooled evidence). Pooled evidence from several studies sits at the top of the evidence pyramid.
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