COPD is a common and preventable dysfunction of the lung resulting to a limitation of airflow. There were 251 million cases of COPD in 2016, and 3.51 million deaths due to COPD in 2015 alone, making it the third leading cause of death according to WHO.  COPD is commonly exacerbated by viral infections (like COVID-19).

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

Asthma is a very common respiratory disease that results in decreased airflow due to airway inflammation and mucus production. It may be classified as an allergic disease.

Asthma

- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
- Asthma

Smith College

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Respiratory System Disease in COVID-19 Patients by Geographic Location

Alqahtani, J. S., Oyelade, T., Aldhahir, A. M., Alghamdi, S. M., Almehmadi, M., Alqahtani, A. S., . . . Hurst, J. R. (2020). Prevalence, Severity and Mortality associated with COPD and Smoking in patients with COVID-19: A Rapid Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Plos One, 15(5). doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0233147
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0233147

Prevalence, Severity and Mortality associated with COPD and Smoking in patients with COVID-19: A Rapid Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Liu, S., Zhi, Y. & Ying, S. (2020). COVID-19 and Asthma: Reflection During the Pandemic. Clinicical Reviews in Allergies and Immunology. doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12016-020-08797-3
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12016-020-08797-3

COVID-19 and Asthma: Reflection During the Pandemic

Respiratory system disease was the fourth most prevalent comorbidity in a study conducted in Wuhan, China, comprised of 1,576 COVID-19-infected patients (1.5%, 95% CI 0.9-2.1%). The pooled odds ratio of respiratory system disease  when comparing severe and non-severe infected patients was 2.46 (95% CI 1.76-3.44).

Respiratory System Disease in COVID-19 Patients in Wuhan, China

Acute respiratory distress syndrome occurs when fluid builds up in the lungs, which leads to major inflammation and may be fatal. Although the nature of fluid built up isn't fully understood, researchers hypothesize that it may be a misregulation of hyaluronan, which can absorb water up to 1000 times its molecular weight. Hyaluronan is a common component of the extracellular matrix and is involved in inflammation response. 

Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome and Hyaluronan in COVID-19 Patients

A  European U-BIOPRED  (Unbiased BIOmarkers Predictive of REspiratory Disease outcomes) cohort study examined the mRNA expression level of ACE2, TMPRSS2, and Furin in the sputum, bronchial brush and bronchial biopsies of volunteer subjects.  These three biomarkers are heavily involved in the pathogenesis of COVID-19, and it was hypothesized that these expression levels would correlate with asthma severity or other molecular phenotypes.  These findings may help to explain why those with asthma and other respiratory diseases are more vulnerable to SARS-CoV-2 infection and symptoms of COVID-19.

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