tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
BMC Infect Dis
. 2024 Sep 20;24(1):1019.
doi: 10.1186/s12879-024-09879-9. Outcomes of COVID-19 in 24 hospitalized liver transplant recipients: an observational study
Amir M Sadeghian[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Mohsenreza Mansourian[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Mitra Ranjbar[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Sobhan Kazemi[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Marzieh Nojomi[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Seyed Yahya Zarghami[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Farrokhlagha Hosseini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Mohammad Hosein Mohammadi[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Background: Although liver transplant (LT) recipients are considered a population at risk of severe features of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), data in this regard are scarce and controversial. In this study, we reported the outcome of 24 cases of LT recipients who were hospitalized due to COVID-19 and investigated the role-playing factors in the severity of the disease.
Methods: In this single-center, analytic case-series study, eligible patients were among LT recipients who were hospitalized due to the diagnosis of COVID-19 based on positive results of polymerase chain reaction. Participants were categorized as severe COVID-19 if they were admitted to the intensive care unit, experienced respiratory failure demanding mechanical ventilation, or eventually died. Demographic and clinical data, COVID-19 symptoms and specific treatments, laboratory biomarkers, and immunosuppressive regimens and their alteration during the admission were recorded. Analysis was done using SPSS software.
Results: Twenty-four hospitalized LT patients were included, of which nine had severe and fifteen had non-severe COVID-19. Out of 9 patients with severe COVID-19, four sadly died. The analysis and comparison between the two groups revealed longer hospital stays (P = 0.02), lower lymphocyte counts (P = 0.002), and higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) (P = 0.006) in patients with severe COVID-19. Patients with non-severe COVID-19 had higher doses of tacrolimus and mycophenolate in their baseline immunosuppressive regimen (both P = 0.02).
Conclusion: Lymphopenia and high CRP levels are associated with more severe forms of COVID-19 in LT patients. Mycophenolate may have protective properties against severe COVID-19. The role of severity indicators in LT patients with COVID-19 needs to be systematically recognized.
Keywords: COVID-19, immunosuppressive agents; Liver transplantation; Transplant recipients.
. 2024 Sep 20;24(1):1019.
doi: 10.1186/s12879-024-09879-9. Outcomes of COVID-19 in 24 hospitalized liver transplant recipients: an observational study
Amir M Sadeghian[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Mohsenreza Mansourian[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Mitra Ranjbar[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Sobhan Kazemi[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Marzieh Nojomi[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Seyed Yahya Zarghami[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Farrokhlagha Hosseini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Mohammad Hosein Mohammadi[SUP] 1 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 39304800
- PMCID: PMC11414169
- DOI: 10.1186/s12879-024-09879-9
Background: Although liver transplant (LT) recipients are considered a population at risk of severe features of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), data in this regard are scarce and controversial. In this study, we reported the outcome of 24 cases of LT recipients who were hospitalized due to COVID-19 and investigated the role-playing factors in the severity of the disease.
Methods: In this single-center, analytic case-series study, eligible patients were among LT recipients who were hospitalized due to the diagnosis of COVID-19 based on positive results of polymerase chain reaction. Participants were categorized as severe COVID-19 if they were admitted to the intensive care unit, experienced respiratory failure demanding mechanical ventilation, or eventually died. Demographic and clinical data, COVID-19 symptoms and specific treatments, laboratory biomarkers, and immunosuppressive regimens and their alteration during the admission were recorded. Analysis was done using SPSS software.
Results: Twenty-four hospitalized LT patients were included, of which nine had severe and fifteen had non-severe COVID-19. Out of 9 patients with severe COVID-19, four sadly died. The analysis and comparison between the two groups revealed longer hospital stays (P = 0.02), lower lymphocyte counts (P = 0.002), and higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) (P = 0.006) in patients with severe COVID-19. Patients with non-severe COVID-19 had higher doses of tacrolimus and mycophenolate in their baseline immunosuppressive regimen (both P = 0.02).
Conclusion: Lymphopenia and high CRP levels are associated with more severe forms of COVID-19 in LT patients. Mycophenolate may have protective properties against severe COVID-19. The role of severity indicators in LT patients with COVID-19 needs to be systematically recognized.
Keywords: COVID-19, immunosuppressive agents; Liver transplantation; Transplant recipients.