Does systemic immunosuppression influence the course of COVID-19?
Immunosuppression is a double-edged sword in viral infections.72 Patients receiving systemic immune suppression (e.g. , chemotherapy) at the time of infection tend to develop a severe form of the disease. There are conflicting results regarding systemic corticosteroid treatment but their usage is not generally recommended in viral infections.49,73,74However, CSS treatment requires systemic immune suppression. Therefore, immune suppression may facilitate viral infection but, at advanced stages of infection, it may be beneficial to counteract immunopathology due to excessive inflammation or CSS.