Autoimmune complications of COVID-19

J Med Virol. 2022 Jan;94(1):54-62. doi: 10.1002/jmv.27292. Epub 2021 Aug 31.

Abstract

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is still propagating a year after the start of the pandemic. Besides the complications patients face during the COVID-19 disease period, there is an accumulating body of evidence concerning the late-onset complications of COVID-19, of which autoimmune manifestations have attracted remarkable attention from the first months of the pandemic. Autoimmune hemolytic anemia, immune thrombocytopenic purpura, autoimmune thyroid diseases, Kawasaki disease, Guillain-Barre syndrome, and the detection of autoantibodies are the cues to the discovery of the potential of COVID-19 in inducing autoimmunity. Clarification of the pathophysiology of COVID-19 injuries to the host, whether it is direct viral injury or autoimmunity, could help to develop appropriate treatment.

Keywords: COVID-19; SARS-CoV-2; autoantibody; autoimmunity; cytopenia.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Autoantibodies / blood
  • Autoantibodies / immunology
  • Autoimmune Diseases / epidemiology*
  • Autoimmune Diseases / immunology*
  • Autoimmune Diseases / virology
  • Autoimmunity / immunology*
  • COVID-19 / immunology
  • COVID-19 / pathology*
  • Humans
  • SARS-CoV-2 / immunology*

Substances

  • Autoantibodies