Risk of COVID-19 Infection After Full Immunization in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease on Treatment: A Research Network Analysis

• Published in: Curēus (Palo Alto, CA) CA), 2023-01, Vol.15 (1), p.e34004
• Main Authors: Tomanguillo, Julton, Searls, Lauren, Annie, Frank H, Kemper, Suzanne, Naravadi, Vishnu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: African Americans; Body mass index; Cardiovascular disease; Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; Coronary vessels; Coronaviruses; COVID-19 vaccines; Diabetes; Gastroenterology; Heart failure; Hypertension; Infections; Inflammatory bowel disease; Medical research; Pandemics; Steroids; Stroke; Vein & artery diseases
• ISSN: 2168-8184; 2168-8184
• DOI: 10.7759/cureus.34004

Acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is an issue in treating patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) due to concerns for infection risk and poor post-vaccination antibody response. We examined the potential impact of IBD treatments on SARS-CoV-2 infection rates after full immunization against COVID-19. Patients who received vaccines between January 2020 and July 2021 were identified. The post-immunization Covid-19 infection rate at 3 and 6 months was assessed in IBD patients receiving treatment. The infection rates were compared to patients without IBD.  Results: The total number of IBD patients was 143,248; of those (n=9405), 6.6% were fully vaccinated. In IBD patients taking biologic agents/small molecules, no difference in Covid-19 infection rate was found at 3 (1.3% vs. 0.97%, p=0.30) and 6 months (2.2% vs. 1.7%, p=0.19) when compared to non-IBD patients. No significant difference in Covid-19 infection rate was found among patients receiving systemic steroids at 3 (1.6% vs. 1.6%, p=1) and 6 months (2.6% vs. 2.9%, p=0.50) between the IBD and non-IBD cohorts.  Conclusions: The COVID-19 immunization rate is suboptimal among IBD patients (6.6%). Vaccination in this cohort is under-utilized and should be encouraged by all healthcare providers.