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Review
. 2020 Aug;59(1):78-88.
doi: 10.1007/s12016-020-08797-3.

COVID-19 and Asthma: Reflection During the Pandemic

Shuang Liu  1   2 , Yuxiang Zhi  3 , Sun Ying  4
Affiliations
Review

COVID-19 and Asthma: Reflection During the Pandemic

Shuang Liu et al. Clin Rev Allergy Immunol. 2020 Aug.

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global pandemic infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), and abnormal, overactivated innate immunity and "cytokine storms" have been proposed as potential pathological mechanisms for rapid COVID-19 progression. Theoretically, asthmatic patients should have increased susceptibility and severity for SARS-CoV-2 infection due to a deficient antiviral immune response and the tendency for exacerbation elicited by common respiratory viruses. However, existing studies have not shown an expected prevalence of asthmatic individuals among COVID-19 patients. Certain aspects of type 2 immune response, including type 2 cytokines (IL-4, IL-13, etc.) and accumulation of eosinophils, might provide potential protective effects against COVID-19. Furthermore, conventional therapeutics for asthma, including inhaled corticosteroids, allergen immunotherapy (AIT), and anti-IgE monoclonal antibody, might also reduce the risks of asthmatics suffering infection of the virus through alleviating inflammation or enhancing antiviral defense. The interactions between COVID-19 and asthma deserve further attention and clarification.

Keywords: Allergic diseases; Asthma; COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; Type 2 immune response.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The schematic presentation of putative interactions between COVID-19 and asthma
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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