COVID-19 in Patients Undergoing Hemodialysis: Prevalence and Asymptomatic Screening During a Period of High Community Prevalence in a Large Paris Center

Abstract

Rationale & ObjectiveDue to extensive comorbid conditions, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has a poor prognosis in people receiving maintenance hemodialysis. In this article, we describe our experience with 200 maintenance hemodialysis patients in a hemodialysis center that used universal reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction testing, including 38 COVID-19–positive patients.Study DesignDescriptive observational cohort, including the time line of patient diagnoses along with contextual events including precautions, testing, screening algorithms, clinical diagnostics and therapy, and the clinical course of COVID-19–infected patients and their final outcomes.Setting & Participants200 patients within a single hemodialysis center with 2 dialysis clinics in Paris.ResultsAmong 200 maintenance hemodialysis patients, 38 (19%) had COVID-19 diagnosed; of these, 15 (39.5%) were admitted to the hospital, including 4 who required intensive care unit (ICU) care. There were 8 (21%) deaths. The most common symptom was fever, followed by dry cough, fatigue, and dyspnea. All COVID-19–infected patients had lymphopenia and an increase in C-reactive protein levels. Median time from the onset of respiratory symptoms to ICU admission was 1 to 2 days. Durations of non-ICU hospitalizations and ICU stays were 7 and 13 days, respectively.LimitationsRetrospective study, single hemodialysis center.ConclusionsDialysis patients are a highly susceptible population and hemodialysis centers are a high-risk area in a COVID-19 epidemic. “Unexplained” lymphopenia and/or an increase in C-reactive protein level should lead physicians to the diagnosis of COVID-19 and should, when possible, be followed by diagnostic testing with universal reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, as well as the reinforcement of contamination barrier measures.