Patients with rheumatoid arthritis suffer from an autoimmune disease in which their immune system mistakenly attacks their body. Moreover, this condition can damage a wide variety of body systems, including skin, eyes, lungs, heart and blood vessels. The Lancet published an article on September 13, 2022. This reviewed the link between COVID rheumatoid arthritis and interstitial lung disease.
COVID Rheumatoid Arthritis and Lung Disease in Context
Interstitial lung disease is a group of disorders that progressively scar lung tissue. It develops after long-term exposure to hazardous materials such as asbestos. Medication may slow the deterioration. However, patients may eventually have difficulty breathing, and getting enough oxygen into their bloodstream.
The Lancet confirms patients with chronic autoimmune disorders are naturally at higher risk of infections. And immuno suppressive therapy further increases this danger. Therefore, COVID-19 was in many ways a ‘perfect storm’ for those interstitial lung disease. That’s because their doctors had no way of knowing whether to stop, or continue treatments with immuno suppressive therapy.
The Key Takeaways from The Lancet Review
COVID and rheumatoid arthritis have a bearing on each other. That’s because people with rheumatoid arthritis are at higher risk of developing severe COVID-19. Plus the fact the risk appears especially high, for those with interstitial lung disease,. However, several factors are still open to speculation in individual cases:
- The degree to which vaccination diminishes the risks of severe COVID-19
- How much of the risk is due to the disease, rather than drugs used to treat it.
The authors of The Lancet review believe doctors require detailed answers to those questions, in order to be able to offer patients accurate evidence-based advice. They recommend a prospective study in which researchers follow, and observe a group of subjects.
This study should be conducted over a period of time, to gather sufficient information and record the development of outcomes. Subject patients should have high disease severity, caused by a variety of interstitial lung disease sub-types.
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