Version 1
: Received: 6 November 2024 / Approved: 6 November 2024 / Online: 6 November 2024 (17:12:58 CET)
How to cite:
Grasselli Kmet, N.; Mavrič, M.; Saletinger, R. Epidemiological and Clinical Characteristics of the Course of COVID-19 Among Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Heart Transplant Recipients in Slovenia. Preprints2024, 2024110447. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202411.0447.v1
Grasselli Kmet, N.; Mavrič, M.; Saletinger, R. Epidemiological and Clinical Characteristics of the Course of COVID-19 Among Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Heart Transplant Recipients in Slovenia. Preprints 2024, 2024110447. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202411.0447.v1
Grasselli Kmet, N.; Mavrič, M.; Saletinger, R. Epidemiological and Clinical Characteristics of the Course of COVID-19 Among Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Heart Transplant Recipients in Slovenia. Preprints2024, 2024110447. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202411.0447.v1
APA Style
Grasselli Kmet, N., Mavrič, M., & Saletinger, R. (2024). Epidemiological and Clinical Characteristics of the Course of COVID-19 Among Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Heart Transplant Recipients in Slovenia. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202411.0447.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Grasselli Kmet, N., Matej Mavrič and Rajko Saletinger. 2024 "Epidemiological and Clinical Characteristics of the Course of COVID-19 Among Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Heart Transplant Recipients in Slovenia" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202411.0447.v1
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Patients receiving solid organ transplantation require lifelong immunosuppression, making them more susceptible to COVID-19. Vaccination against COVID-19 is recommended for HTR. The aim of the present study was to compare the course of the disease in vaccinated and unvaccinated HTR hospitalized in a tertiary hospital in Slovenia and to evaluate possible hesitant groups. Methods: All SARS-CoV-2 positive HTR (N=79) between 1 March 2020 and 31 December 2023 at the Infectious Diseases Department, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Slovenia, were included retrospectively. Demographic, clinical and vaccination data were extracted from medical documentation and statistical evaluation was performed. Results: The vaccination rate in the cohort was 63.3%. We found no statistically significant difference in vaccination rates regarding gender (male 68.4% vs. female 50%, p=0.128), but there was a statistically significant higher revaccination rate in males (male 52.7% vs. female 18.2%, p=0.021). Vaccinated HRT were statistically significantly older than unvaccinated (p=0.000) and had a significantly higher Charlson Comorbidity index (p=0.001). The vaccination rate among patients who received transplants before the pandemic (prior to 2020) was statistically significantly higher (71.7% vs. 46.2%; p=0.027). Conclusions: Our results indicate no significant differences in the clinical course of COVID-19 between vaccinated and unvaccinated HRT regarding acute respiratory insufficiency (ARI), length of hospital stay (LOS), intensive care unit admission and mortality. However, our findings do suggest statistically significant differences in COVID-19 vaccine acceptance rates; younger HRT and those transplanted after the pandemic are more hesitant to vaccination and female HRT accept booster doses less frequently.
Medicine and Pharmacology, Epidemiology and Infectious Diseases
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
