The Relationship Between COVID-19 and Autoimmune Diseases, Lessons From Practice

The study explore the relationship between COVID-19 and the induction of autoimmune diseases. This study comprises both retrospective and prospective components. The retrospective arm (2016-2019) was conducted to establish baseline incidence rates of autoimmune diseases (AIDs) prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. The prospective arm (2020-2024) involves the identification and longitudinal follow-up of newly diagnosed AID cases to evaluate disease progression, therapeutic response, and recurrence. Based on these data, the study will yield four distinct analyses: 1. trends in AID incidence before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, 2. the demographic and clinical profile of AID patients in the post-COVID-19 era, 3. the association between COVID-19 vaccine status and the development of AIDs, and 4. the clinical course, response to therapy, and long-term outcomes of AIDs in post-COVID patients compared to pre-pandemic cases.