Covid-19 Course in Connective Tissue Disease-Related Interstitial Lung Disease Patients

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Coronovirus 2019 ( Covid-19) infection has been related to increased mortality amongst patients with lung disease. In this study it was aimed to showed the mortality rate and possible prognostic factors related to Covid-19 in connective tissue disease related interstitial lung disease patients (CTD-ILD) METHODS: In a tertiary referral center,patients with previously diagnosed CTD-ILD retrospectively reviewed. Between 1th April 2020 to 1 th April 2021 patients data related to ILD disease, Covid-19 infection and mortality obtained from electronic records retrospectively. The primary outcome was death at day 30 of COVID-19 infection RESULTS: There were 271patients diagnosed with CTD-ILD. 74 patients had Covid-19 infection, which was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction. 29 patients were dead during the followed-up period of whom 13 patients had Covid-19 infection-related mortality (17.5% vs 8.1%, p: 0.045). Covid-19 infection related to mortality was more frequently seen in patients with decreased forced vital capacity, smoking history, extended disease and rheumatoid arthritis. On multivariate regression analysis, only decreased forced vital capacity were related to poor outcomes. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Covid-19 infection is related to increased risk of mortality in CTD-ILD patients. Decreased forced vital capacity is a poor prognostic risk factor

Keywords

• connective tissue disease
• interstitial lung disease
• covid-19 infection
• mortality