COVID-19 Incidence and Disease Course Among Patients at an Allergy Department

Louise E van der Aa; Inge S van Egmond; Martijn van der Sluijs; A A Sophie den Otter; Nadie H M Bosmans; Sabine E van Beek; Angela Hartman; Niels A D Guchelaar; Paul L A van Daele; Maurits S van Maaren; P Martin van Hagen; Maud A W Hermans; Saskia M Rombach

doi:10.1177/27534030231172391

COVID-19 Incidence and Disease Course Among Patients at an Allergy Department

Ther Adv Allergy Rhinol. 2023 May 15:14:27534030231172391. doi: 10.1177/27534030231172391. eCollection 2023 Jan-Dec.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Allergy & Clinical Immunology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
² Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Abstract

Background: Since the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, there is not much reported about the disease course of COVID-19 in patients with allergic diseases.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the cumulative incidence and severity of COVID-19 among patients from the allergy department compared with the general Dutch population and people from their household.

Design: We conducted a comparative longitudinal cohort study.

Methods: In this study patients of the allergy department were included with their household members as a control group. Data from the beginning of the pandemic were systematically obtained through questionnaires by telephonic interviews and retrieved from electronic patient files between October 15, 2020 and January 29, 2021. Main outcomes were confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection, disease duration, hospitalization, intensive care admission, and mortality. Questions regarding applied social distancing measures were inventoried as well.

Results: Three hundred and eighty nine patients (median age 39.1 (18.7-84.7) years, 69.9% female) and 441 household members (median age 42.0 (18.0-91.5), 44.1% female) were included. The cumulative COVID-19 incidence in patients was higher compared with the general population (10.5% vs 5.6%, P < .001). In total, 41 (10.5%) patients attending the allergy clinic compared to 38 (8.6%) household members were infected with SARS-CoV-2 (P = .407). Median disease duration was 11.0 (0.0-61.0) days in patients compared to 10.5(1.0-232.0) days in household members (P = .996).

Conclusion: The cumulative COVID-19 incidence in patients from the allergy cohort was higher compared with the general Dutch population, but similar compared with household members. There was no difference in symptoms, disease duration, or hospitalization rate between the allergy cohort and their household members.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; allergy; hypersensitivity; incidence.