Childhood Rheumatic Diseases and COVID-19 Pandemic: An Intriguing Linkage and a New Horizon

Abstract

As it is known, we are all in a pandemic situation due to a novelcoronavirus, officially named “Severe Acute Respiratory SyndromeCoronavirus 2” and the disease caused by the virus named “Coronavirusdisease-2019”. The virus seems to has propensity to infect older maleindividuals with underlying disease. The clinical features were on alarge scale that varies from being an asymptomatic carrier to acuterespiratory distress syndrome and multiorgan dysfunction. Fever, drycough and fatigue are the most common symptoms. Not only, thedisease seems to be rare and have a milder course in pediatric agebut also respiratory failure, multiorgan dysfunction, and death areextremely rare. Although several comorbidities such as hypertension,diabetes and cardiovascular diseases are defined as a risk factor fordeveloping the acute respiratory syndrome and need for intensivecare; immune-compromised situations such as rheumatic diseasewhich require immunosuppressive treatment strikingly are not foundto be a risk factor for more severe disease course. However, there isa lack of data regarding the effects of “Coronavirus disease-2019”on pediatric patients with rheumatic diseases. Additionally, thereare three controversial circumstances that patients with rheumaticdiseases are believed to be more likely to have viral infections like“Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2”, on the otherhand, antirheumatic drugs may have a protective and therapeutic rolein Coronavirus disease-2019 and children are more unlikely to haveserious disease course. Therefore, we aimed to have a contributor rolefor explaining this conundrum and present a bird’s eye view regardingthis equivocal issue in this review.