The impact of COVID‐19 on kidney transplantation and the kidney transplant recipient – One year into the pandemic
Pascale Khairallah, Nidhi Aggarwal, Ahmed A. Awan, Chandan Vangala, Medha Airy, Jenny S. Pan, B. V. R. Murthy, Wolfgang C. Winkelmayer, Venkat Ramanathan
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly changed the landscape of kidney transplantation in the United States and worldwide. In addition to adversely impacting allograft and patient survival in postkidney transplant recipients, the current pandemic has affected all aspects of transplant care, including transplant referrals and listing, organ donation rates, organ procurement and shipping, and waitlist mortality. Critical decisions were made during this period by transplant centers and individual transplant physicians taking into consideration patient safety and resource utilization. As countries have begun administering the COVID vaccines, new and important considerations pertinent to our transplant population have arisen. This comprehensive review focuses on the impact of COVID-19 on kidney transplantation rates, mortality, policy decisions, and the clinical management of transplanted patients infected with COVID-19.