Ne, C. K. H., Suaini, N. H. A., Aung, W. T., Ong, K. G. S., Samuel, M., & Tham, E. H. (2024). Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on adults and children with atopic dermatitis and food allergy: Systematic review. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: Global, 3(1), 100181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacig.2023.100181
Abstract:
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions to healthcare services and health impacts on patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) and/or food allergy (FA). This systematic review evaluated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and disease on AD/FA patients.
Methods: A comprehensive systematic literature search was conducted from December 2019 to 2022. Screening and data extraction were done following the PRISMA guidelines and the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool was used to assess risk of bias.
Results: In total, 159 studies were included. Five of seven studies reported no significant changes in overall incidence or prevalence of AD during the pandemic, although some studies noted an increase in the elderly and infants. Telehealth served as an effective alternative to face-to-face consultations, with mixed levels of patient and provider satisfaction. Dissatisfaction was most marked in patients with more severe disease who felt that their disease was inadequately managed through telemedicine. Higher levels of general anxiety were recorded in both AD/FA patients and caregivers, an effect more pronounced in patients with severe disease. Most studies reported no significant differences in post-vaccination adverse effects in AD patients, however, results were more varied in FA patients.
Conclusion: Our review identified the impact of COVID-19 pandemic- and disease-driven changes on patients with AD and FA. Telemedicine is uniquely suited to manage atopic diseases and hybrid care may be a suitable approach even in the post-pandemic era. COVID-19 vaccines and biologics can be safely administered to patients with atopic diseases, with appropriate patient education to ensure continued care for high-risk patients.
License type:
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
Funding Info:
There was no specific funding for the research done