EPIDEMIOLOGICAL AND CLINICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF HEART TRANSPLANT RECIPIENTS DURING THE 2019 CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK IN WUHAN, CHINA: A DESCRIPTIVE SURVEY REPORT

Ren, Zong-Li; Hu, Rui; Wang, Zhi-Wei; Zhang, Min; Ruan, Yong-Le; Wu, Zhi-Yong; Wu, Hong-Bing; Hu, Xiao-Ping; Hu, Zhi-Peng; Ren, Wei; Li, Luo-Cheng; Dai, Fei-Feng; Liu, Huan; Cai, Xin

BACKGROUND: The epidemiological and clinical characteristics of heart transplant (HTx) recipients during the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic remains unclear. We studied the characteristics of HTx recipients during Dec 20, 2019 and Feb 25, 2020 in an effort to understand their risk and outcomes. METHODS: All accessible HTx recipients were included in this single-center, retrospective study. We collected information on the recipients using a web-based questionnaire as well as the hospital database. RESULTS: We followed 87 HTx recipients (72.4% were men and average age was 51 years). 79 recipients resided in Hubei, and 57 recipients had a Wuhan related history of travel or contact. The majority took precautionary measures while in contact with suspicious crowds. 96.6% of the families and communities undertook prevention and quarantine procedures. 4 upper airway infection were reported, and 3 of them tested negative for SARS-CoV-2 (the 4(th) recovered and was not tested). All cases were mild and successfully recovered after proper treatment. Laboratory results of 47 HTx cases within the last 2 months were extracted. 21.3% recipients had pre-existing lymphopenia and 87.2% of recipients had therapeutic tacrolimus concentration (5-12ng/ml). 5 and 6 recipients had liver and kidney insufficiency respectively. CONCLUSION: HTx recipients that practiced appropriate prevention measures had a low rate of infection with SARS-CoV-2 and transition to COVID-19. These early data will require confirmation as the pandemic establishes around the world.