Oral Steroids do not Increase Risk of COVID 19 in Patients of chronic rhinosinusitis

CRS management frequently comprises conservative treatment, including a combination of topical and OCS. However, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, clinicians may have been reluctant to prescribe OCSs out of possible concern for an increased risk of contracting COVID-19 or developing more severe COVID-19 symptoms.

Therefore, Dr Lauren E. Miller and Dr Neil Bhattacharyya conducted a study to explore the association between the use of OCSs and the development of COVID-19 in patients with CRS.

It was a historical cohort study of 1707 patients with chronic rhinosinusitis. The researchers stratified the patient subset into two groups: those who received OCSs within 28 days before their COVID-19 testing and those who did not and recorded the number of days between the initial OCS prescription and the COVID-19 test.

Key findings of the study were:

Upon analysis, the researchers found no statistically significant difference in the rates of patients with a positive diagnosis of COVID-19 who underwent an OCS treatment regimen compared to those who did not, both within 28 days and 14 days prior to the COVID-19 test.

The authors concluded, "Given OCSs are often a major component of medical management of CRS, this study proves helpful in counseling patients on risks of steroid use in CRS treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic."

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/01945998211006931