Predictors of Severe COVID Infections Among Transplant Recipients Explored

COVID-19 infection seems to be severe in certain groups, but it is mild and manageable for many others. Researchers have now identified some predictors of unfavorable outcomes related to COVID-19 for people who received solid organ transplants (SOTRs).

Solid-organ transplants are considered a treatment for critical organ failures. It includes the transplantation of the heart, kidney, liver, and lungs.

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‘Poor covid-related outcomes were seen among SOTRs who had breathing difficulties and elevated white blood cell counts. The percentage of mortality was 21.4%.’

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Elisa Cordero, a researcher at the Institute of Biomedicine of Seville (IBiS) and professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Seville, led a study that involved 210 covid-affected SOTRs from 12 hospitals in Spain. Of these, 140 subjects were male with an average age of 63 years. The objective of the study was to analyze the characteristics of unfavorable covid-related clinical outcomes among SOTRs in detail.

The common symptoms seen among these patients were cough, breathing difficulties, and gastrointestinal disorders. The treatment medications used include hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir/ritonavir, and tocilizumab.

After the observations, the team found that thirty-seven (17.6%) of the patients required ICU admission, and twelve (5.7%) patients experienced graft dysfunction. The percentage of mortality was 21.4%. Factors like older age, reduction in White blood cell count, elevation in breath rate, and lactate dehydrogenase levels were the critical factors that could result in poor covid-related outcomes among SOTRs.

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"This study found that SARS-CoV-2 infection is more severe in patients who have received a solid organ transplant, especially in the first months after transplantation. It is thus very important to take strict precautionary measures," concludes Dr. Cordero.

The study portrays a precise clinical outlook of covid infections among transplant recipients and emphasizes the need for individual assessment and close monitoring. The project also received funds from the Carlos III Health Institute (ISCIII), Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation.

Test your Knowledge on Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Coronavirus is a large positive-strand RNA virus that is surrounded by a protein envelope. The virus obtains its name from the S protein spikes on its surface, which resemble a crown. The overall pattern of increasing coronavirus cases is shown to spike up with the “second wave” of COVID-19.

With spiking effects of the second wave of coronavirus, the best way to keep it at bay is to follow COVID-appropriate safety practices like wearing a mask, regularly cleaning your hands, and coughing into a bent elbow or tissue along with physical distancing (6 feet about 2 arm's length), that may help evade the severity of COVID-19 infection.

Source-Medindia

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