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20-08-2021 | COVID-19 | News

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TNF inhibitor use linked to reduced COVID-19 incidence

Author: Claire Barnard

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medwireNews: Treatment with tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors may be associated with a reduced risk for developing COVID-19 among people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) or seronegative spondyloarthritis (SpA), researchers report.

Mansour Salesi (Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran) and colleagues’ study involved 254 participants aged an average of approximately 50 years who took part in structured interviews on COVID-19 infection between June and December 2020. A total of 45% had been receiving treatment with a TNF inhibitor for at least 3 months during the pandemic.

As reported in Rheumatology and Therapy, 5% of the 115 individuals taking TNF inhibitors developed COVID-19, compared with 27% of the 139 not taking these agents. Logistic regression modeling demonstrated that use of adalimumab, infliximab, or etanercept was associated with a significantly reduced risk for COVID-19, with odds ratios of 0.03, 0.05, and 0.20, respectively.

Salesi and team caution that their study had a number of limitations, including low COVID-19 incidence in people with autoimmune disease due to preventive behavior, and they note that it was not possible to determine whether concomitant treatment with other DMARDs influenced the association between TNF inhibitor use and COVID-19.

Nonetheless, they conclude that TNF inhibitors may have a “prophylactic role […] in preventing COVID-19” in people with RA and SpA.

medwireNews is an independent medical news service provided by Springer Healthcare Ltd. © 2021 Springer Healthcare Ltd, part of the Springer Nature Group

20 August 2021: The coronavirus pandemic is affecting all healthcare professionals across the globe. Medicine Matters’ focus, in this difficult time, is the dissemination of the latest data to support you in your research and clinical practice, based on the scientific literature. We will update the information we provide on the site, as the data are published. However, please refer to your own professional and governmental guidelines for the latest guidance in your own country.

Rheumatol Ther 2021; doi:10.1007/s40744-021-00342-8

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