Clinical and Laboratory Characteristics of Patients with Bronchial Asthma who Suffered from COVID-19

Aim. To identify differences in the clinical and laboratory profile of patients with bronchial asthma (BA) who suffered a clinically significant coronavirus infection caused by the SARS-Cov2 virus and patients with asthma, without anamnestic indications for COVID-19 in the Republic of Crimea. Design. Analytical comparative mixed sample controlled pilot study. Materials and methods. Patients (n = 67) underwent sanatorium-resort treatment in the Department of Pulmonology of the I.M. Sechenov Academic Research Institute in Yalta. Participants were divided into 2 groups: group 1 included patients with asthma and a history of clinically significant COVID-19, and group 2 included patients with asthma without a confirmed history of COVID-19. Before and after treatment, patients underwent a survey assessing the frequency and intensity of coughing, frequency of exacerbations, and severity of shortness of breath, Modified Medical Research Council scale, physical examination assessing the severity of dry wheezing, respiratory rate, and heart rate, an Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire survey, and a 6-minute walking test. Pulse oximetry, tonometry and spirometry were performed. Biological material was collected: blood plasma for further laboratory analysis, which included the leukocyte formula, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, total cholesterol rate, high-density and low-density lipoproteins, triglycerides (TG) rate and C-reactive protein (CRP) rate. Results. In patients of group 1, the activity limitation index (AQLQ A) was significantly lower than in group 2: 3.82 versus 4.36 points (p = 0.015). Significant differences in the degree of environmental influence on the course of the disease (AQLQ S criterion) were also revealed: in patients of group 1, the index was 3.25 points, and in group 2 — 4.25 points (p = 0.043). TG and CRP levels were higher in group 1 than in group 2: 1.1 versus 0.8 mmol/l (p = 0.04) and 4.0 versus 3.0 mg/l (p = 0.03), respectively. Conclusion. Patients with bronchial asthma who have had COVID-19 show a decrease in quality of life according to the AQLQ A (activity limitation) and AQLQ S (influence of environmental factors on symptoms) criteria, and increased levels of lipid profile markers (TG) and systemic inflammation (CRP), which dictates the need to search for new methods to correct these disorders in such patients. Keywords: bronchial asthma, COVID-19, sanatorium treatment, systemic inflammation.