Abstract
Introduction
Data on antibody response following COVID-19 in kidney transplant
recipients is scarce. We performed a cross-sectional study to
investigate antibody response to COVID-19 among kidney transplant
recipients.
Design
We recruited 46 kidney transplant recipients with RT-PCR confirmed
COVID-19 and 45 recipients without COVID-19 history. We also constructed
two control groups (COVID-19 positive and negative) from a historical
cohort of health care workers. We used age and sex-based propensity
score matching to select eligible subjects to control groups. We
measured SARS-Cov-2 IgG levels quantitatively using the Abbott ARCHITECT
system. An antibody level above 1.4 S/C defined positivity.
Results
Transplant recipients with COVID-19 had a higher BMI, and COVID-19
history in a household member was more common than that of the
transplant recipient without COVID-19. IgG seropositivity rate (69.6%
vs 78.3%, p=0.238) and median IgG level (3.28 [IQR 0.80-5.85] vs
4.59 [1.61-6.06], p=0.499) were similar in COVID-19 positive
transplant recipients and controls. There was a trend toward lower
antibody levels in kidney transplant recipients associated with a longer
duration between RT-PCR and antibody testing (r=-0.532,
p<0.001).
Conclusion
At the early post-COVID-19 period, transplant recipients have an
antibody response that is similar to controls. However, antibody levels
and associated immunity should be closely observed with longer follow-up
durations.