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Coronavirus Disease 2019 in Kidney Transplant Recipients: Single-Center Experience and Case-Control Study
Anna Hardesty1, Aakriti Pandita2, Kendra Vieira2
1Department of Internal Medicine, Residency, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.
Transplantation Proceedings
|February 12, 2021
Summary
Kidney transplant recipients (KTR) with COVID-19 had outcomes comparable to non-transplant patients, but experienced more bacterial infections. Immunosuppressant drug levels were often high in these KTR.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Infectious Diseases
- Transplantation
Background:
- Kidney transplant recipients (KTR) are a high-risk group for COVID-19 complications.
- Limited data exists on immunosuppressant drug levels and secondary infections in KTR with COVID-19.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the clinical course of COVID-19 in KTR.
- To compare outcomes between hospitalized KTR and non-transplant controls.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective case series of KTR diagnosed with COVID-19.
- Comparison of clinical outcomes between KTR and age/sex-matched non-transplant controls.
- Analysis of immunosuppressant drug levels and secondary infection rates.
Main Results:
- No significant difference in length of stay or clinical outcomes between KTR and controls.
- Elevated tacrolimus or sirolimus levels (>10 ng/mL) in 67% of KTR.
- Higher incidence of bacterial infections in KTR (36.3%) compared to controls (6.8%).
Conclusions:
- COVID-19 outcomes in KTR were comparable to non-transplant patients in this cohort.
- High calcineurin or mTOR inhibitor levels were observed in KTR.
- Bacterial infections were more frequent in KTR.
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