COVID-19 Pneumonia in two Patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis Using Anti-TNF Agents

The new type of coronavirus (SARS-CoV2) reported to have originated in China in December 2019 has spread rapidly all over the world and has become a global problem. COVID-19 is more common and more severe in people with such comorbidities as cardiovascular disease, hypertension and diabetes. There is a lack of consensus on whether rheumatological diseases and drugs used in their treatment increase the risk of developing COVID-19. There is also lack of data in literature regarding the development of COVID-19, especially in patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis. This case presentation relates to two patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis using antiTNF agents who were affected by COVID-19. The younger of the two, who had no comorbidities, healed quickly with antiviral and supportive therapy, while the older patient, who had cardiovascular and chronic kidney comorbidities, experienced an aggressive disease course and did not survive. The course of COVID-19 infection and mortality is strongly connected with underlying comorbidities. Our focus here is on rheumatological diseases, their immunosuppressive treatments and their impact on the course of the novel type Coronavirus infection, based on two cases of Ankylosing Spondylitis, in light of literature. (English) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Cin’de, Aralik 2019’da gorulmeye baslanan yeni tip koronavirus (SARS-CoV2) hizla tum dunyaya yayilmis ve kuresel bir sorun haline gelmistir. Kardiyovaskuler hastalik, hipertansiyon, diyabet gibi komorbiditesi olan kisilerde COVID-19 daha sik rastlanmakta ve daha agir seyretmektedir. Romatolojik hastaliklarin ve bunlarin tedavisinde kullanilan ilaclarin COVID-19 gelisme riskini arttirip arttirmadigi tartismalidir. Literaturde ozellikle Ankilozan Spondilitli hastalarda COVID-19 gelisimi ile ilgili veri eksikligi mevcuttur. Biz bu olgu sunumunda Anti-TNF kullanirken, COVID-19 enfeksiyonu geciren, iki Ankilozan Spondilit’liyi sunmayi amacladik. Komorbiditesi olmayan genc hastamiz, antiviral ve destek tedavisi ile hizli sekilde iyilesti. Kronik kardiyovaskuler ve bobrek hastaligi olan yasli hastamizin seyri daha agir oldu ve hayat kaybi ile sonuclandi. COVID-19 enfeksiyonun seyri ve mortalitesi, altta yatan komorbid hastaliklar ile yakin iliskilidir. Ankilozan Spondilitli iki olgu ornegi uzerinden romatolojik hastaliklar ve kullanilan immunsupresif tedavilerin yeni tip koronavirus enfeksiyonu seyrine etkisini, literatur esliginde, tartismayi amacladik. (Turkish) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Respiratory Case Reports is the property of LookUs Scientific and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)