SARS-CoV-2 anti–spike antibodies after vaccination in pediatric heart transplantation: A first report

Abstract

BackgroundBACKGROUND: There is a paucity of data regarding the antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in children after solid organ transplant.METHODSWe retrospectively reviewed the SARS-CoV-2 Anti–Spike IgG antibodies measured following SARS-CoV-2 vaccination at our pediatric heart transplant (HTx) center.RESULTSAmong patients (median age 17.1 years) in whom antibody testing was performed (median 118 days post-vaccine completion), a SARS-CoV-2 Anti–Spike IgG antibody was detected in 28 of 40 (70%) post-HTx recipients (median antibody level 10.9 AU/ml). Neutropenia, diabetes mellitus, and previous use of rituximab were associated with absence of a detectable antibody. All 7 post-HTx patients with a known pre-vaccination SARS-CoV-2 viral infection had a detectable SARS-CoV-2 Anti–Spike IgG. All 12 vaccinated pre-HTx patients had a detectable antibody (median antibody level 11.6 AU/ml) including 5 patients that maintained detectable antibodies post-HTx. There were no cases of myocarditis among the total of 17 pre-HTx and 81 post-HTx patients that underwent SARS-CoV-2 vaccination.CONCLUSIONOur data suggest that a significant proportion of pediatric HTx recipients have no detectable antibody response after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination and support the recommendation to complete the vaccination series prior to HTx in those pediatric patients waiting for HTx.