Hemodialysis Patients Make Long-Lived Antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 that May Be Associated with Reduced Reinfection
Gemma D. Banham, Alexandra Godlee, Sian Faustini, Adam F. Cunningham, Alex Richter, Lorraine Harper, on behalf of the COVID-HD Birmingham Study Group
Abstract
Significance Statement Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections have a devastating effect on patients receiving hemodialysis. To what extent infection-induced antibody responses are maintained, or protective, is unknown. This study describes the evolution of antibodies against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in a cohort of 990 patients on hemodialysis. During the first wave of the pandemic, 26% of patients had developed antispike SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Fewer PCR-confirmed second-wave infections were observed in patients with pre-existing antibodies (4.2%) than those without antibodies (11.4%). This study shows that SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in patients on hemodialysis are well maintained and associate with reduced risk of subsequent SARS-CoV-2 infection.