Safety of COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Diseases

Ali Abdulrahman Younis; Asal Adnan Ridha; Yasameen Abbas Humadi; Nizar Abdulateef Jassim; Nabaa Ihsan Awadh; Avin Maroof; Ali Mohammed Hussein Alqazzaz; Faiq I Gorial; Taha Ahmed Qaradaghi; Zahraa Salam Abdulzahra; Zainab A Mahmood; Noor Talal Yaseen; Duaa Nidhal AlIdrecy; Israa Talib Hakman; Saja Jabbar Tarfah; Adil Saudi Khudhair

doi:10.31138/mjr.140223.sof

Safety of COVID-19 Vaccine in Patients with Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Diseases

Mediterr J Rheumatol. 2024 Feb 8;35(1):123-133. doi: 10.31138/mjr.140223.sof. eCollection 2024 Mar.

Authors

Ali Abdulrahman Younis¹, Asal Adnan Ridha², Yasameen Abbas Humadi³, Nizar Abdulateef Jassim⁴, Nabaa Ihsan Awadh², Avin Maroof⁵, Ali Mohammed Hussein Alqazzaz⁶, Faiq I Gorial², Taha Ahmed Qaradaghi⁷, Zahraa Salam Abdulzahra², Zainab A Mahmood⁸, Noor Talal Yaseen², Duaa Nidhal AlIdrecy⁹, Israa Talib Hakman¹⁰, Saja Jabbar Tarfah¹⁰, Adil Saudi Khudhair¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Mosul, Mosul, Iraq.
² Rheumatology Unit, Department of Internal Medicine, Baghdad Teaching Hospital, Medical City, Iraq.
³ Al-Nahrain University, College of Medicine, Baghdad, Iraq.
⁴ Rheumatology Unit, Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Baghdad, Iraq.
⁵ School of Medicine, University of Kurdistan-Hawler, Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq.
⁶ Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Babylon, Iraq.
⁷ Sulaymaniyah Internal Medicine Teaching Hospital, Sulaymaniyah, Iraq.
⁸ College of Medicine, University of Basrah, Basrah, Iraq.
⁹ Al-Imamain Al-Kadhimin Medical City, Baghdad, Iraq.
¹⁰ Baghdad Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq.

Abstract

Objectives: The main purpose of this study was to determine the frequency of COVID-19 vaccine side effects in patients with rheumatic diseases and to examine any potential associations with medications, disease type, or comorbidities.

Methods: A multicentre cross-sectional study from rheumatology units in different hospitals in Iraq was carried out between 8^th of August 2021 and 4th of August 2022. Patients were eligible for inclusion if they have a rheumatic disease and have taken one or more doses of any COVID-19 vaccine.

Results: A total of 661 (57.8% female, mean age 46.51± 12.97 years) patients with rheumatic illnesses who received the "COVID-19" vaccination were included in this study. Rheumatoid arthritis was the most frequent diagnostic group. The Pfizer vaccine was given to the majority of patients (74.6%), followed by Sinopharm (16.2%), and AstraZeneca (9.2%). Side effects were detected in 661(100%) and 528 (100%) patients following the first and second vaccination doses, respectively; among which the most frequent were injection site pain in 57.8% following the first dose and 47.6% after the second dose, followed by fatigue and fever. According to multivariate logistic regression models, age (B=-0.204, p = 0.000), had a significantly inverse correlation coefficient with the experience of greater side effects. Rheumatic disease flares reported in 9.9%, 10.3%, and 8.2% of patients who received the Pfizer, Sinopharm, and AstraZeneca vaccines, respectively.

Conclusion: The "COVID-19" vaccination has a reassuring safety profile with no greater risk of adverse events in any specific illness or pharmacological therapy.

Keywords: COVID-19; flare; rheumatic diseases; safety; vaccine.