Lung function before and after COVID-19 in young adults: A population-based study

Ida Mogensen; Jenny Hallberg; Sophia Björkander; Likun Du; Fanglei Zuo; Lennart Hammarström; Qiang Pan-Hammarström; Sandra Ekström; Antonios Georgelis; Lena Palmberg; Christer Janson; Anna Bergström; Erik Melén; Inger Kull; BAMSE COVID-19 Study Group

doi:10.1016/j.jacig.2022.03.001

Lung function before and after COVID-19 in young adults: A population-based study

J Allergy Clin Immunol Glob. 2022 May;1(2):37-42. doi: 10.1016/j.jacig.2022.03.001. Epub 2022 Mar 30.

Authors

Ida Mogensen¹, Jenny Hallberg^{1

2}, Sophia Björkander¹, Likun Du³, Fanglei Zuo³, Lennart Hammarström³, Qiang Pan-Hammarström³, Sandra Ekström^{4

5}, Antonios Georgelis⁴, Lena Palmberg⁴, Christer Janson⁶, Anna Bergström⁴, Erik Melén^{1

2}, Inger Kull^{1

2}; BAMSE COVID-19 Study Group

Collaborators

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Science and Education Södersjukhuset, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
² Sachs' Children and Youth Hospital, Södersjukhuset, Stockholm, Sweden.
³ Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden.
⁴ Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
⁵ Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Region Stockholm, Stockholm, Sweden.
⁶ Department of Medical Sciences: Respiratory, Allergy, and Sleep Research, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.

Abstract

Background: There is limited evidence on the long-term impact of mild-to-moderate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on lung function among young adults.

Objectives: We aimed to assess whether COVID-19 has a negative impact on lung function in young adults and whether asthma, allergic sensitization, or use of inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs) modifies a potential association.

Methods: Participants from the population-based BAMSE (Barn, Allergi, Miljö, Stockholm, Epidemiologi) cohort with spirometry assessed before (2016-2019) and after onset of the COVID-19 pandemic (2020-2021) were included. Serum levels of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) receptor-binding domain-specific IgG, IgM, and/or IgA (determined with ELISA) defined seropositivity. Mean change in lung function (ie, change in FEV₁, forced vital capacity [FVC], and FEV₁/FVC ratio expressed as percent of predicted [pp]) from before to after onset of the pandemic were compared between the seronegative and seropositive participants. In seropositive participants, change in lung function was assessed in relation to allergic sensitization and self-reported ICS use.

Results: Of the 853 included participants, 29% (n = 243) were seropositive. There were no differences in change in lung function between the seronegative and seropositive participants (for mean change in FEV₁ pp [SD], seropositivity = 0.87% [4.79%] and seronegativity = 1.03% (4.76%) [P = .66] for difference using a t test; FVC pp (SD), seropositivity = 1.34% (4.44%) and seronegativity = 1.29% (4.27%) [P = .87]; and for FEV₁/FVC pp (SD), seropositivity = -0.25% (3.13%) and seronegativity = -0.13% (3.15%) [P = .61]). Similar results were observed among participants with asthma (n = 147 [17%]). Among seropositive participants, allergic sensitization or ICS use did not influence lung function.

Conclusion: We found no evidence of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 affecting lung function long term in a population-based cohort of young adults. Moreover, neither asthma nor allergic sensitization nor ICS use affected the results.

Keywords: AU, Arbitrary unit; Asthma; BAMSE, Barn, Allergi, Miljö, Stockholm, Epidemiologi; BMI, Body mass index; COVID-19; COVID-19, Coronavirus disease 2019; FVC, Forced vital capacity; ICS, Inhaled corticosteroid; Lung function; SARS-CoV-2, Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; pp, Percent of predicted.