Management of COVID-19 in patients after liver transplantation: Beijing working party for liver transplantation

Liu, Hongling; He, Xi; Wang, Yudong; Zhou, Shuangnan; Zhang, Dali; Zhu, Jiye; He, Qiang; Zhu, Zhijun; Li, Guangming; Sun, Libo; Wang, Jianli; Cheng, Gregory; Liu, Zhenwen; Lau, George

Annually, around 850 liver transplantation is performed in Beijing, China. Recently, the new coronavirus pneumonia (COVID-19) caused by 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has affected nearly 200 countries worldwide. 2019-nCov can cause severe lung disease, multiple-organ damage, and significant mortalities. Liver transplant recipients, because of long-term oral immunosuppressant effects, may be more susceptible to 2019-nCoV infection and have a worse prognosis than the general population. It is urgent to set up guidelines for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of COVID-19 in liver transplant recipients. In this article, we reviewed the clinical aspects of 2019-nCoV infection, characteristics of liver transplant recipients, immunosuppressant usage, and potential drug interactions to provide recommendations to clinical staff managing liver transplant recipients during the COVID-19 epidemic.