TY - JOUR
TI - Increased influenza vaccination rates in patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases during the Covid-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study
AU - Fragoulis, G.E.
AU - Grigoropoulos, I.
AU - Mavrea, E.
AU - Arida, A.
AU - Bournia, V.-K.
AU - Evangelatos, G.
AU - Fragiadaki, K.
AU - Karamanakos, A.
AU - Kravvariti, E.
AU - Panopoulos, S.
AU - Pappa, M.
AU - Thomas, K.
AU - Tektonidou, M.G.
AU - Paraskevis, D.
AU - Vassilopoulos, D.
AU - Sfikakis, P.P.
JO - Rheumatology International
PY - 2021
VL - 41
TODO - 5
SP - 895-902
PB - Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH
SN - 0172-8172, 1437-160X
TODO - 10.1007/s00296-021-04817-3
TODO - antineoplastic agent;  biological product;  glucocorticoid;  immunosuppressive agent;  influenza vaccine;  influenza vaccine, adult;  aged;  Article;  autoimmune disease;  autoinflammatory disease;  biological therapy;  cancer chemotherapy;  connective tissue disease;  coronavirus disease 2019;  corticosteroid therapy;  cross-sectional study;  disease exacerbation;  female;  follow up;  human;  immunosuppressive treatment;  influenza vaccination;  major clinical study;  male;  malignant neoplasm;  observational study;  pandemic;  patient compliance;  priority journal;  rheumatic disease;  rheumatoid arthritis;  rheumatologist;  seasonal influenza;  self report;  systemic vasculitis;  telephone interview;  tertiary care center;  treatment refusal;  vaccination coverage;  vaccinee;  autoimmune disease;  clinical trial;  influenza;  middle aged;  multicenter study;  psychology;  rheumatic disease;  very elderly;  young adult, Adult;  Aged;  Aged, 80 and over;  Autoimmune Diseases;  COVID-19;  Cross-Sectional Studies;  Female;  Humans;  Influenza Vaccines;  Influenza, Human;  Male;  Middle Aged;  Pandemics;  Patient Compliance;  Rheumatic Diseases;  SARS-CoV-2;  Vaccination Coverage;  Young Adult
TODO - To assess non-compliance and potential changes in seasonal flu vaccination coverage before and during the Covid-19 pandemic in patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases (ARDs). Consecutive patients with ARDs followed-up in 2 tertiary hospitals were telephone-interviewed (December 12–30, 2020) regarding seasonal flu vaccination during the 2019/20 and 2020/21 time periods. Self-reported disease flares that occurred after flu vaccination, as well as reasons for non-vaccination were recorded.One thousand fifteen patients were included. The rate of flu vaccination increased from 76% before to 83% during the COVID-19 pandemic (p = 0.0001). The rate of self-reported disease flares was < 1% among vaccinated patients. Reasons for not vaccination in both periods, respectively, included: ‘was not recommended by their rheumatologists’ (35.0vs.12.2%, p < 0.0001), ‘did not feel that they would have any benefit’ (36.9 vs. 32.6%), felt unsafe to do so (27.5 vs. 30.2%), or other reasons (18.9 vs. 23.8%). By multivariate analysis, age [OR = 1.03 (95% CI 1.02–1.04)] vs. [1.04 (95% CI 1.02–1.05)] and treatment with biologics [OR = 1.66 (95% CI 1.22–2.24) vs. [1.68 (95% CI 1.19–2.38)] were independent factors associated with vaccination in both periods. These findings, although are temporally encouraging, emphasize the need for continuous campaigns aiming at increasing patients’ and physicians’ awareness about the benefits of vaccination. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH, DE part of Springer Nature.
ER -