Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the management of chronic noninfectious respiratory diseases

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged health care across the world, not just by the severity of the disease and the high mortality rate but also by the consequences on the management of the patients with chronic diseases. Areas covered: This review summarizes the most up-to-date published data regarding the impact of COVID-19 on the management and outcomes of patients with chronic noninfectious respiratory illnesses including obstructive sleep apnea, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bronchiectasis, interstitial and pulmonary vascular diseases, and lung cancer. Expert opinion: Most of chronic respiratory diseases (except asthma and cystic fibrosis) are associated with more severe COVID-19 and poor outcomes but the mechanisms involved are not yet identified. The therapeutic management of the patients with chronic respiratory diseases and COVID-19 is similar to the other patients but the post-recovery course could be worse in this population and followed by the development of pulmonary fibrosis, bronchiectasis, and pulmonary hypertension. The pandemic highly impacted our usual medical activities by limiting the access to several diagnosis procedures, the necessity to develop new methods for the monitoring of the disease and adapt the therapeutic strategies. The long-term consequences of all these changes are still unknown.

Automated summary

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the management and outcomes of patients with chronic noninfectious respiratory illnesses. Most chronic respiratory diseases, apart from asthma and cystic fibrosis, are associated with more severe COVID-19 and poor outcomes. The therapeutic management of these patients is similar to others, but there may be worse post-recovery courses leading to pulmonary fibrosis, bronchiectasis, and pulmonary hypertension. The pandemic has also affected medical activities by limiting access to diagnosis procedures and requiring the development of new monitoring methods and therapeutic strategies. The long-term consequences of these changes remain unknown.