Infect Chemother.  2024 Sep;56(3):329-338. 10.3947/ic.2024.0027.

Clinical Outcomes of Solid Organ Transplant Recipients Hospitalized with COVID-19: A Propensity Score-Matched Cohort Study

• Lim JH
• Nam E
• Seo YJ
• Jung HY
• Choi JY
• Cho JH
• Park SH
• Kim CD
• Kim YL
• Bae S
• Hwang S
• Kim Y
• Chang HH
• Kim SW
• Jung J
• Kwon KT

• KMID: 2559757
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3947/ic.2024.0027

Abstract

Background
Solid-organ transplant recipients (SOTRs) receiving immunosuppressive therapy are expected to have worse clinical outcomes from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, published studies have shown mixed results, depending on adjustment for important confounders such as age, variants, and vaccination status.
Materials and Methods
We retrospectively collected the data on 7,327 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 from two tertiary hospitals with government-designated COVID-19 regional centers. We compared clinical outcomes between SOTRs and non-SOTRs by a propensity score-matched analysis (1:2) based on age, gender, and the date of COVID-19 diagnosis. We also performed a multivariate logistic regression analysis to adjust other important confounders such as vaccination status and the Charlson comorbidity index.
Results
After matching, SOTRs (n=83) had a significantly higher risk of high-flow nasal cannula use, mechanical ventilation, acute kidney injury, and a composite of COVID-19 severity outcomes than non-SOTRs (n=160) (all P <0.05). The National Early Warning Score was significantly higher in SOTRs than in non-SOTRs from day 1 to 7 of hospitalization ( P for interaction=0.008 by generalized estimating equation). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, SOTRs (odds ratio [OR], 2.14; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12–4.11) and male gender (OR, 2.62; 95% CI, 1.26– 5.45) were associated with worse outcomes, and receiving two to three doses of COVID-19 vaccine (OR, 0.43; 95% CI, 0.24–0.79) was associated with better outcomes.
Conclusion
Hospitalized SOTRs with COVID-19 had a worse prognosis than non-SOTRs. COVID-19 vaccination should be implemented appropriately to prevent severe COVID-19 progression in this population.

Keyword

SARS-CoV-2; Immunization; Transplantation; Treatment outcome