[ad_1]
People with asthma may have a reduced risk of contracting the coronavirus, according to a study published last week in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
Israeli researchers tested 37,469 subjects, 6% of whom tested positive for the virus. Among those who tested positive for the virus, 6.75% had asthma, compared to 9.62% of those who tested negative for COVID-19, according to the study results.
Eugene Merzon, one of the leading researchers, told the Jerusalem Post that there were at least three possible explanations, including that asthma is associated with lower levels of ACE receptors. angiotensin 2 (ACE2), which is a virus infection mechanism. cells.
Merzon, head of the managed care department of Leumit’s health services, said it was also possible that asthmatics, knowing they are at risk of more severe cases of the virus, simply take more precautions not to have it. contract.
The third option he proposed is that the inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) that people frequently use to treat asthma can reduce the risk of developing the virus. He cited studies showing that ICS can reduce the replication of the coronavirus.
Merzon said more study was needed on the matter, noting that the research was based on inpatient data.
“[A]All of this prevalence data was derived from the COVID-19 inpatient population, ”the researchers wrote. “Therefore, the prevalence of asthma may be different in ambulatory patients with COVID-19.”
However, previous research confirms the results of the study. Only 9% of patients hospitalized with the virus in New York City suffered from asthma, according to earlier studies cited by the authors. Asthma patients also appeared to be less susceptible to previous severe acute respiratory syndromes such as the 2003 SARS outbreak.
[ad_2]
Source link