A Questionnaire-Based Survey on the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with chronic HBV infection and HIV infection

Lu Chen ¹ Chao Cai ¹ Si-Jie Zheng ¹ Liang Hong ² Hui Zhao ³ Fei-Fei Su ^4* Ming-Qin Lu ^1*

• ¹ First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
• ² Third Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
• ³ Yueqing People's Hospital, Yueqing, Zhejiang Province, China
• ⁴ Wenzhou Central Hospital, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China

Background and Aims: Traditional observational studies have yielded inconsistent findings regarding the association between COVID-19 and HBV/HIV infections, as well as the protective effects of antiviral therapy against severe COVID-19. This study aimed to investigate the potential links between the current use of antiviral therapy and the rates of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and symptoms of infection in patients with SARS-CoV-2 and HBV/HIV.Methods: Using a questionnaire-based survey, we recorded whether participants had been infected with SARS-CoV-2, and the symptoms and severity of COVID-19 after the illness.Results: Among 756 participants, chi-square tests showed a higher incidence of COVID-19 in the HBV infection group (75.6%, P=0.047) and the HIV infection group (77.6%, P=0.036). These two groups exhibited fewer symptoms than the control group (P<0.001). The differences in the prevalence of most symptoms were also significant.Conclusions: Our findings suggest that patients with HBV or HIV infection have a higher risk of contracting SARS-CoV-2 than the general population; however, antiviral treatment relieves the symptoms of COVID-19.