Multiple manifestations of uncontrolled asthma increase the risk of severe COVID-19

Objective: Asthma control is of importance when assessing the risk of severe outcomes of COVID-19. The aim of this study was to explore associations of clinical characteristics and the effect of multiple manifestations of uncontrolled asthma with severe COVID-19. Methods: In 2014-2020, adult patients with uncontrolled asthma, defined as Asthma Control Test (ACT) =19 were identified in the Swedish National Airway Register (SNAR) (n = 24533). The SNAR database, including clinical data, was linked with national registers to identify patients with severe COVID-19 (n = 221). The effect of multiple manifestations of uncontrolled asthma was based on: 1) ACT <= 15, 2) frequent exacerbations and 3) previous asthma inpatient/secondary care and evaluated stepwise. Poisson regression analyses were conducted with severe COVID-19 as the dependent variable. Results: In this cohort with uncontrolled asthma, obesity was the strongest independent risk factor for severe COVID-19 in both sexes, but even greater in men. Multiple manifestations of uncontrolled asthma were more common among those with severe COVID-19 vs. without: one, 45.7 vs. 42.3%, two, 18.1 vs. 9.1% and three, 5.0 vs. 2.1%. The risk ratio (RR) of severe COVID-19 increased with an increasing number of manifestations of uncontrolled asthma: one, RR 1.49 (95% CI 1.09-2.02), two, RR 2.42 (95% CI 1.64-3.57) and three, RR 2.96 (95% CI 1.57-5.60), when adjusted for sex, age, and BMI. Conclusions: It is important to consider the effect of multiple manifestations of uncontrolled asthma and obesity when assessing patients with COVID-19, as this increases the risk of severe outcomes substantially.

Automated summary

This study aimed to explore the associations between clinical characteristics and multiple manifestations of uncontrolled asthma with severe COVID-19. The findings revealed that obesity was the strongest independent risk factor for severe COVID-19, particularly in men. Multiple manifestations of uncontrolled asthma were more common in patients with severe COVID-19 and were associated with an increased risk of severe outcomes. It is crucial to consider both uncontrolled asthma and obesity when assessing patients with COVID-19.