Abstract Novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) has spread rapidly around the world. Individuals with immune dysregulation and/or on immunosuppressive therapy, such as rheumatic patients, are considered at greater risk for infections. However, the risks of patients with each subcategory of rheumatic diseases have not been reported. Here, we identified 100 rheumatic patients from 18,786 COVID‐19 patients hospitalized in 23 centers affiliated to Hubei COVID‐19 Rheumatology Alliance between January 1 and April 1, 2020. Demographic information, medical history, length of hospital stay, classification of disease severity, symptoms and signs, laboratory tests, disease outcome, computed tomography, and treatments information were collected. Compared to gout and ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients, patients with connective tissue disease (CTD) tend to be more severe after COVID‐19 infection ( p = 0.081). CTD patients also had lower lymphocyte counts, hemoglobin, and platelet counts ( p values were 0.033, < 0.001, and 0.071, respectively). Hydroxychloroquine therapy and low‐ to medium‐dose glucocorticoids before COVID‐19 diagnosis reduced the progression of COVID‐19 to severe/critical conditions ( p = 0.001 for hydroxychloroquine; p = 0.006 for glucocorticoids). Our data suggests that COVID‐19 in CTD patients may be more severe compared to patients with AS or gout. A total of 100 patients with rheumatic disease and COVID‐19 were collected from 23 centers in Hubei, China. COVID‐19 in patients with connective tissue disease was more severe compared to patients with ankylosing spondylitis or gout. Hydroxychloroquine therapy and low‐dose glucocorticoids before diagnosis of COVID‐19 reduced the progression of COVID‐19 to severe/critical conditions.
【저자키워드】 COVID‐19, Hydroxychloroquine, SARS‐CoV‐2, rheumatic disease, connective tissue disease, 【초록키워드】 Treatment, Glucocorticoids, Coronavirus disease 2019, therapy, Hospitalized, disease severity, Diagnosis, risk, Laboratory tests, Symptom, progression, outcome, glucocorticoid, COVID‐19, Spread, China, Computed tomography, infections, Patient, Platelet, hemoglobin, novel, demographic, information, disease, Gout, patients, immunosuppressive, immune dysregulation, Hospital stay, individual, lymphocyte counts, COVID‐19 infection, spondylitis, connective tissue, greater, collected, reported, reduced, condition, conditions, CTD, Alliance, COVID‐19 patient, 【제목키워드】 China, Patient, COVID‐19 infection, connective tissue,