Antibody responses after documented COVID-19 disease in patients with autoimmune rheumatic disease

Patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases (AIRD) are suspected to have less robust immune responses during COVID-19 due to underlying immune dysfunction and the use of immune-suppressive drugs. Fifty consecutive patients with a diagnosis of AIRD on disease-modifying drugs were included at around 3...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical rheumatology 2021-11, Vol.40 (11), p.4665-4670
Main Authors: Shenoy, Padmanabha, Ahmed, Sakir, Shanoj, K. C., Shenoy, Veena, Damodaran, Deepak, Menon, Aparna R., Alias, Bazil, SanjoSaijan, Devakumar, Divya, Babu, A. S. Sageer
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Antibodies
Antibodies, Viral
Antibody Formation
Autoimmune Diseases - complications
Brief Report
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Disease
Fasciitis
Female
Humans
Immune response (humoral)
Immunoglobulin G
Immunosuppressive agents
Inflammatory diseases
Leukocytes (eosinophilic)
Male
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Middle Aged
Nucleocapsids
Patients
Rheumatic diseases
Rheumatic Diseases - complications
Rheumatoid arthritis
Rheumatology
SARS-CoV-2
Spike protein
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases (AIRD) are suspected to have less robust immune responses during COVID-19 due to underlying immune dysfunction and the use of immune-suppressive drugs. Fifty consecutive patients with a diagnosis of AIRD on disease-modifying drugs were included at around 30 days after a confirmatory test for COVID-19. Fifty controls matched one to one for age, sex, and severity of COVID-19 were also included at around 30 days after testing positive for COVID-19. Antibody titers for anti-spike protein IgG and anti-nucleocapsid protein IgG were estimated. Cases (mean age 45.9 ± 13; 76% females) and controls (mean age 45.9 ± 13; 76% females) had similar proportion of comorbidities. Of the cases, 4 had moderate and 1 had severe COVID-19, while 3 and 1 of controls had moderate and severe COVID-19 respectively. Positivity of anti-N IgG was similar between patients (80%) and controls (90%) (p = 0.26). Similarly, anti-S IgG was positive in 82% of patients and 86% of controls (p = 0.79). Both the antibodies were negative in seven (14%) patients and five (10%) of controls (p = 0.76, Fischer exact test). Only anti-N IgG titers were lower in patients as compared to controls. In four patients with rheumatoid arthritis, two with spondyloarthritis and one with eosinophilic fasciitis both antibodies were not detectable. They did not differ from the rest of the cohort in clinical characteristics. The patients with AIRD had adequate protective antibody responses to COVID-19 at a median of 30 days post-infection. Thus, the presence of AIRD or the use of immunosuppressants does not seem to influence the development of humoral immune response against COVID-19. Key Points • Patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases (AIRD) are suspected to have less robust immune responses. • In our cohort of 50 patients with AIRD with confirmed COVID-19, only seven did not have detectable protective antibodies at 30 days post infection. • Patients with AIRD on immunosuppressants have adequate protective antibodies post COVID-19 disease, at rates similar to that in health controls.
ISSN:0770-3198
1434-9949
DOI:10.1007/s10067-021-05801-9