Patients With Specific Skin Disorders Affected by COVID-19: What Do Experiences Say About Management Strategies? A Systematic Review

This systematic review from 2020 examined the impact of COVID-19 on patients with chronic skin disorders who were undergoing systemic treatments. It included data from 9 articles involving 12 patients. The findings indicated that these patients did not experience more severe COVID-19 symptoms than the general population, with only one patient requiring ICU admission. Management strategies during the infection involved pausing biologic or immunosuppressive treatments, with patients receiving standard COVID-19 care. After patients recovered from COVID-19, their dermatologic treatments were resumed. The review suggested that exacerbations of skin conditions were generally mild to moderate, and that temporarily stopping dermatologic treatments during COVID-19 could prevent severe flare-ups. Only one case of severe psoriasis relapse was reported post-COVID-19. Overall, the study concluded that patients with chronic dermatologic conditions on systemic treatments did not face increased severity or hospitalization risk from COVID-19 compared to the broader population, and could safely continue their skin treatments after recovery.