Introduction:

People with chronic respiratory diseases, asthma included, may be at increased risk for severe COVID-19. However, published studies so far have reported inconsistent results regarding the prevalence of asthma.

Objective:

The aim of this study was to characterize hospitalized patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Methods:

Retrospective observational study with analysis of hospitalized patients between March 1st and June 30rd.

Results:

This study included 237 patients, with asthma being reported in 16 patients (6,8%). Asthmatic patients tended to be younger (70 years vs 80 years, p=0.027) and to have less comorbidities (1 vs 2 p=0.014) compared with non-asthmatic patients. Regarding the therapeutic approach, asthmatic patients required more inhaled corticosteroid therapy as well hydroxychloroquine, but the ceiling of treatment was less stablished (50% vs 21.7%, p=0.027; 75% vs 48.9%, p=0.044; 6.3% vs 38%, p=0.011, respectively). The mortality rate was lower compared with that of non-asthmatic patients (12.5% vs 37.1%, p=0.047). The severity of asthma did not seem to influence analysed outcomes.

Conclusion:

In this study, asthma did not appear to contribute to the more severe COVID-19.

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