• Zaira S Chaudhry, Nathan Nellessen, Cesar Reis, and Akbar Sharip.
• Loma Linda University Medical Center, Occupational Medicine Center, San Bernardino, CA, USA.
• Fam Pract. 2022 Nov 22; 39 (6): 111611341116-1134.

BackgroundGiven the widespread impact of COVID-19, it is important to explore any atypical presentations and long-term sequelae associated with this viral infection, including the precipitation of inflammatory arthritis.ObjectiveTo identify and summarize clinical reports of acute inflammatory arthritis associated with COVID-19.MethodsA systematic review of the PubMed (MEDLINE), Google Scholar, and Cochrane Central databases through January 31, 2022 was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines. The inclusion criteria were: human subjects and English language. Data extraction and qualitative synthesis of the demographics, clinical presentations, treatments, and outcomes were performed. Quality assessment was performed using the Joanna-Briggs Institute critical appraisal tools.ResultsA total of 37 articles collectively describing the cases of 54 patients were included. The mean age was 48.2 years (6-78 years). 53.7% of patients were male and 46.3% were female. The onset of articular symptoms varied considerably, and the majority of cases were described as polyarticular (29). The classification of inflammatory arthritis in the included studies was as follows: reactive (19), post-viral (13), new-onset rheumatoid arthritis (RA) (8), crystal-proven arthropathy flare (4), acute viral (2), new-onset psoriatic arthritis (2), flare of preexisting RA (2), and other (4). Arthritis treatment regimens varied but consisted largely of NSAIDs and corticosteroids with most patients experiencing improvement or resolution of their joint symptoms.ConclusionThere is limited low-level evidence suggesting that patients may develop acute arthritis during or after SARS-CoV-2 infection. This review highlights the need for further research to elucidate the relationship between COVID-19 and the development of inflammatory arthritis.© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

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