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Oct 16, 2026

Updated COVID vaccines reduce hospitalization risk for immunocompromised patients with autoimmune disease

A new study found that patients with autoimmune rheumatic disease who received updated or booster COVID-19 vaccines had significantly lower odds of COVID-related hospitalization compared to those who only received the initial vaccine series. The findings come as COVID hospitalizations have risen sharply in recent weeks.

Oct 16, 20262 sources

Top claims

▪Among patients with autoimmune rheumatic conditions, study data in Arthritis Care & Research showed an adjusted odds ratio for COVID-19 hospitalization of 0.31 for those receiving an updated vaccine series and 0.29 for those receiving a booster, relative to unvaccinated patients.
▪A retrospective cohort study using National Clinical Cohort Collaborative data evaluated 60,980 patients with autoimmune rheumatic conditions who acquired an incident COVID-19 case between December 2020 and August 2024, including 6,336 patients who received an updated COVID-19 vaccine.
▪Comparing patients with autoimmune rheumatic conditions receiving initial COVID-19 vaccines only against those receiving updated or booster doses showed an absolute risk reduction for hospitalization of 5.6 percent, yielding a number needed to treat of 18.

Subtopics

Autoimmune disease1 COVID-19 vaccines1

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