This RECORDER project evolved throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to address clinically important questions regarding outcomes of COVID-19 infection such as hospitalisation and infection, it has been supported by multiple funders
This project is part of the Registration of Complex Rare Diseases Exemplars in Rheumatology (RECORDER) collaboration between the University of Nottingham, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust and the National Disease Registration Service (NDRS)
Background
People with rare autoimmune rheumatic diseases (RAIRD) such as vasculitis, lupus, myositis and scleroderma are often treated with immunosuppression and are at increased risk of poor outcomes from infection compared to the general population. There was concern that they may have more severe COVID-19 outcomes but there was no research specific to this group of rare diseases.
Aims
This project aimed to:
1) Find out whether people with RAIRD were at increased risk of severe outcomes (such as hospitalisation or death) following COVID-19 infection compared to people in the general population
2) Describe how the risk of severe outcomes evolved during the pandemic
3) Describe how the risk was influenced by immunosuppression, such as treatment with corticosteroids.
Publications
Rutter M, Lanyon PC, Grainge MJ, Hubbard R, Bythell M, Stilwell P, Aston J, McPhail S, Stevens S, Pearce FA. COVID-19 infection, admission and death and the impact of corticosteroids amongst people with rare autoimmune rheumatic disease during the second wave of covid-19 in England: results from the RECORDER Project. Rheumatology. 2023 Apr 5:kead150. https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/kead150 Plain English summary
Peach E, Rutter M, Lanyon P, Grainge MJ, Hubbard R, Aston J, Bythell M, Stevens S, Pearce F. Risk of death among people with rare autoimmune diseases compared with the general population in England during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2021 Apr 6;60(4):1902-1909. https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keaa855
Rutter M, Lanyon P, Grainge MJ, Hubbard R, Peach E, Bythell M, Stilwell R, Aston J, Stevens S, Pearce F. COVID-19 Infection, Admission and Death Amongst People with Rare Autoimmune Rheumatic Disease in England. Results from the RECORDER Project. Rheumatology, 2021; https://doi.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keab794
Podcasts
Rheumatology podcast. Bukhari, M., Rutter, M. COVID-19 infection and related death amongst people with RAIRD. November 2021
Rheumatology podcast. Galloway, J., Rutter, M. Dr Megan Rutter on shielding patterns among patients with lupus. January 2021
Rheumatology podcast. Bukhari, M., Pearce, F. The risk of death among RAIRD patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. January 2021