Short and Long-Term Outcomes of Kidney Transplant Recipients Diagnosed With COVID-19 Infection: A Single-Center Observational Study

Purpose: Kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) are at an increased risk of severe disease and death caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection. There is a paucity of information on the evolution of graft function among hospitalized KTRs who overcome the infection. Methods: The study included adult KTRs at a single transplant institute who were diagnosed with COVID-19 and needed hospitalization between March 15, 2020, and January 15, 2021. We analyzed patient demographics, comorbid risk factors, and inpatient clinical courses for patients who were able to recover from the infection. Kidney function was analyzed pre-infection, during initial hospitalization, and up to 12 months post-infection. Results: We identified 48 KTRs who were diagnosed with COVID-19 infection during the study period. Eighteen KTRs among these needed hospitalization for symptoms of fever and respiratory distress. Four patients died of COVID-19 infection-related complications and were excluded from the study. The 14 remaining patients in the study were predominantly of the Black race (85.7%), with a median time since transplant of four years. Of the patients, 64.3% developed acute kidney injury (AKI), with an average peak serum creatinine (sCr) of 2.6 mg/dl and a glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of 35. The mean sCr and GFR of the group were 2 mg/dl and 44 at baseline (prior to infection). This represented an increase in their sCr and GFR of 34% and 29%, respectively. The median follow-up post-infection was 14.5 months. sCr and GFR were 1.87 mg/dl and 47 at three to six months, and 1.89 mg/dl and 48 at nine to 12 months post-infection. New onset proteinuria was noted in five out of 14 patients (36%), with complete resolution of the same in all at three to six months follow-up. Of patients with AKI, 78% had complete recovery at three to six months follow-up. The mean baseline sCr and GFR of patients who had incomplete recovery was 2.35 and 31.5 with pre-existing proteinuria. Of our entire cohort, there was only one patient who experienced graft loss. This patient had a baseline sCr and GFR of 3.8 mg/dl and 22, existing proteinuria on urinalysis, and a history of biopsy-proven rejection. Conclusion: AKI is common among KTRs who are hospitalized with COVID-19 infection. Most of these recovered, although we noted that patients with baseline lower kidney function and existing proteinuria had a lower recovery rate.