Is lupus an “underlying condition “ for increased risk of covid-19?

[ferhana]

A few lupus patients have had either a letter or text to say they are at special risk as they they have an underlying condition. Some lupus patients haven’t. So are we in that group of people particularly vulnerable or not? Should we be extra careful?

[Paul_Howard Partner LUPUS UK]

Hi ferhana ,

You may wish to take a look at our article at lupusuk.org.uk/coronavirus/

It has lots of information and guidance. You'll see that because lupus is a very varied condition in presentation and treatment, not everyone will be equally at risk. This article helps you to understand how an individual's risk level is decided and what precautionary measures they should take.

[ferhana in reply to Paul_Howard]

That’s really helpful. Thank you Paul. I’ll look out for responses to the document you linked

[nanleighh in reply to Paul_Howard]

I’m glad you brought this to peoples attention Paul because it does depend on the treatments that you are on, as well as your age as to how much risk you are at. For instance somebody that is on methotrexate or azithroprine would be at higher risk because of the effect on blood cells then somebody that is not. Thanks