Summary: There are several safe and effective vaccines for COVID-19. These vaccines are recommended for transplant patients in most circumstances. This presentation reviews guidelines, offers recommendations, and answers questions about the benefits of COVID-19 vaccines for transplant patients.

Presenters:
Alyssa Letourneau MD MPH, Medical Director of the Antimicrobial Stewardship Program at Massachusetts General Hospital.
Areej El-Jawahri MD, Director of the Bone Marrow Transplant Program, and the Associate Director of the Cancer Survivorship Program at Massachusetts General Hospital.

To read the transcript, go to: [ Ссылка ]

Highlights:

Transplant recipients who contract COVID-19 have higher rates of severe illness, hospitalization, and mortality. Being within a year of transplant, remaining on anti-cancer therapy or systemic immunosuppression, and poor performance status elevate the risk of contracting COVID-19.
COVID-19 vaccines are very safe, though transplant recipients may have common side effects that resolve in two or three days. More serious side effects like blood clots and myocarditis are quite rare and less risky than those associated with COVID-19 itself.
For hospitalized patients, treatments include Remdesivir, dexamethasone, and agents to reduce systemic inflammation. Treatment decisions should be made in consultation with infectious disease doctors who can evaluate the risks for immunocompromised individuals.


This is a recording of the presentation COVID-19: Precautions, Vaccines and Treatments for Transplant Recipients which occurred on Nov. 9 2021.

Key Points:

(07:03) For transplant recipients more than two years out with no GVHD or immunosuppressive treatments, the risk of COVID-19 approximates that of the general population.

(09:51) Transplant recipients should wait three to six months after transplant to get vaccinated for COVIID-19 n order to get the most robust immune response.

(11:35) Vaccine response is lower in general for transplant recipients who are less than two years out after transplant.

(12:47) mRNA vaccines offer an especially robust immune response which makes them somewhat preferable for transplant recipients.

(17:16) Booster shots are recommended for transplant recipients, including those less than two years out after transplant and those with GVHD.

(18:14) Transplant recipients can mix and match vaccines; following the J & J vaccine with an mRNA booster may be especially helpful.

(21:23) Promising COVID-19 treatments include monoclonal antibodies which should be administered as early as possible in the illness course.

(25:35) Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin are not effective treatments for COVID-19.

(26:11) We know little about long-term effects of the COVID-19 vaccines, but long-term effects of the disease itself are much worse .

(29:40) Additional boosters or vaccines may be advisable with more data or as new variants of COVID-19 appear.

(30:38) Those who have had COVID-19 should still get the vaccine since it provides potentially stronger immunity than the body’s reaction to the disease itself.

Meet the speakers:
Alyssa Letourneau MD: [ Ссылка ]
Areej El-Jawahri MD: [ Ссылка ]

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