JAK inhibitors in COVID-19: the need for vigilance regarding increased inherent thrombotic risk. Issue 3 (24th September 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Mehta, Puja; Ciurtin, Coziana; Scully, Marie; Levi, Marcel; Chambers, Rachel C.
• Is Part Of: European respiratory journal. Volume 56:Issue 3(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-09-24
• Subjects: Respiratory organs -- Diseases -- Periodicals; Respiration -- Periodicals; 616.2
• DOI: 10.1183/13993003.01919-2020
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0903-1936

Abstract

There is accumulating evidence that coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a hypercoagulable state. Reports of thrombotic events and autopsy findings of pulmonary thrombotic microangiopathy in patients with COVID-19 are rising [1]. Bompard et al. [2] recently reported a cohort study of 137 patients with COVID-19 pneumonia, in which retrospective review of computed tomography pulmonary angiography scans demonstrated a cumulative incidence of pulmonary emboli (PE) of 24% overall and 50% in intensive care. Although it was initially thought that insidious venous thromboembolic events (VTE) were mainly confined to ventilated patients [3], we now understand thrombotic risk to be a wider problem in COVID-19. JAK inhibitors have promising therapeutic potential in COVID-19 with dual anti-inflammatory and anti-viral effects. Vigilance to the potentially increased thrombotic risk associated with JAKi is recommended, given the hypercoagulability of COVID-19. https://bit.ly/2NQ15K5