- A new study concludes that people with asthma are at no greater risk of contracting the new coronavirus or developing severe COVID-19 if they do contract an infection.
- The latest research is backed by other recent studies and provides a different conclusion from studies done early in the pandemic.
- Experts say some medications that people with asthma take may have some preventive qualities against COVID-19.
Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, there were so many unknowns, including who was most at risk of severe illness or death from the disease.
People with asthma were on high alert.
A contagious and deadly respiratory virus like SARS-CoV-2 seemed a certain threat to people who may have difficulty breathing on any given day.
“With the rapid spread of a novel disease, healthcare providers faced a glaring lack of data and were required to use knowledge of previous coronaviruses and SARS to make initial recommendations,” wrote Dr. Mitchell H. Grayson, a physician in the division of allergy and immunology at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio, in an editorial that will be published in the journal Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology that was provided early to Healthline.
“Using this previous knowledge and early reports of ‘chronic lung disease’ being a risk for poor outcomes, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) declared asthma a high-risk condition for developing severe disease from COVID-19,” he wrote.
There have been many studies since the early days of the pandemic that have reduced the fear of a poor outcome for people with asthma.
A study from the George Institute published last month looked at how COVID-19 affects people with asthma. It’s providing more reassurance that having asthma doesn’t necessarily increase the risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19.
Healthline explored this research and other studies, and asked experts what they’re telling their patients and how people with asthma should proceed with this information.
Source: healthline