Transplant of SARS-CoV-2–infected Living Donor Liver: Case Report
Michelle Nguyen, Eliza J. Lee, Robin K. Avery, M. Veronica Dioverti, Shmuel Shoham, Aaron A.R. Tobian, Evan M. Bloch, Ahmet Gürakar, Nicole Rizkalla, Andrew M. Cameron, Elizabeth A. King, Shane Ottmann, Jacqueline Garonzik‐Wang, Russel N. Wesson, Benjamin Philosophe
Abstract
Given the high community prevalence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), transplant programs will encounter SARS-CoV-2 infections in living donors or recipients in the perioperative period. There is limited data on SARS-CoV-2 viremia and organotropism beyond the respiratory tract to inform the risk of transplant transmission of SARS-CoV-2. We report a case of a living donor liver transplant recipient who received a right lobe graft from a living donor with symptomatic PCR-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection 3 d following donation. The donor was successfully treated with remdesivir, dexamethasone, and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) convalescent plasma. No viral transmission was identified, and both donor and recipient had excellent postoperative outcomes.