COVID‐19 infection in patients with history of pediatric heart transplant in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland

Ulrich, Sarah ; Balmer, Christian; Becker, Kolja; Bruhs, Josefin; Danne, Friederike; Debus, Volker; Dewein, Leonie; Di‐Bernardo, Stefano; Doll, Ulrike; Fleck, Thilo; Tirilomis, Theodor; Glöckler, Martin; Grafmann, Maria; Greil, Sabine; Grosser, Urte; Saur, Patrick; Skrzypek, Susanne und Steinmetz, Michael (2024): COVID‐19 infection in patients with history of pediatric heart transplant in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. In: Clinical Transplantation, Bd. 38, Nr. 3

Abstract

COVID-19 is a heterogenous infection—asymptomatic to fatal. While the course of pediatric COVID-19 infections is usually mild or even asymptomatic, individuals after adult heart transplantation are at high risk of a severe infection. We conducted a retrospective, multicenter survey of 16 pediatric heart transplant centers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland to evaluate the risk of a severe COVID-19 infection after pediatric heart transplantation between 02/2020 and 06/2021. Twenty-six subjects (11 male) with a median age of 9.77 years at time of transplantation and a median of 4.65 years after transplantation suffered from COVID-19 infection. The median age at time of COVID-10 infection was 17.20 years. Fourteen subjects had an asymptomatic COVID-19 infection. The most frequent symptoms were myalgia/fatigue (n = 6), cough (n = 5), rhinitis (n = 5), and loss of taste (n = 5). Only one subject showed dyspnea. Eleven individuals needed therapy in an outpatient setting, four subjects were hospitalized. One person needed oxygen supply, none of the subjects needed non-invasive or invasive mechanical ventilation. No specific signs for graft dysfunction were found by non-invasive testing. In pediatric heart transplant subjects, COVID-19 infection was mostly asymptomatic or mild. There were no SARS-CoV-2 associated myocardial dysfunction in heart transplant individuals.

• Dokumententyp: Zeitschriftenartikel
• Fakultät: Medizin > Klinikum der LMU München > Kinderchirurgische Klinik und Poliklinik im Dr. von Haunerschen Kinderspital
• Themengebiete: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften > 610 Medizin und Gesundheit
• ISSN: 0902-0063
• Sprache: Englisch