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

ABSTRACT 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 4th 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.