Paradoxical low severity of COVID-19 in Prader-Willi syndrome: data from a French survey on 647 patients

• Published in: Orphanet journal of rare diseases 2021-07, Vol.16 (1), p.1-325, Article 325
• Main Authors: Coupaye, Muriel, Laurier, Virginie, Benvegnu, Grégoire, Poitou, Christine, Faucher, Pauline, Mosbah, Héléna, Diene, Gwenaelle, Pinto, Graziella, Briceéo, Laura González, Merrien, Christine, Toyos, Ana Camarena, Montastier, Emilie, Tauber, Maithé, Mourre, Fabien
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Age; Asthenia; Body mass index; Children; Comorbidity; Coronaviruses; Cough; COVID-19; Cytokines; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus; Down syndrome; Emerging diseases; Endocrinology and metabolism; Fever; Group homes; Hospitalization; Human health and pathology; Hypotheses; Infections; Infectious diseases; Life Sciences; Medical research; Mortality; Neuropeptides; Obesity; Oxytocin; Pandemics; Patients; Pneumonia; Population; Prader-Willi syndrome; Psychotropic drugs; Rare diseases; Risk factors; Santé publique et épidémiologie; SARS-CoV-2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Sleep apnea; Statistics; Vitamin D
• ISSN: 1750-1172; 1750-1172
• DOI: 10.1186/s13023-021-01949-4

We obtained responses from 288 adults (84%) and 239 children (78%). From March 2020 to January 2021, 38 adults (13.2%) and 13 children (5.4%) with PWS had SARS-CoV-2 infection. Mean age of adults was 34.1 [+ or -] 11.9 years and mean body mass index was 40.6 [+ or -] 12.7 kg/m.sup.2; 82% had obesity and 37% had diabetes. Only 3 children (23%) had obesity and none had diabetes. Similar to the general population, the most frequent symptoms of COVID-19 were asthenia, fever, cough, headache and shortness of breath. All patients had a favorable outcome. PWS itself is not a risk factor for severe COVID-19 in children and adults. On the contrary, evolution of SARS-CoV-2 infection in adults with PWS seems more favorable than expected, given their comorbidities.