Results
A total of 8 post renal transplant patients with COVID-19 were admitted to our intensive care unit during the study period. Five of the eight patients were female. The most common comorbid condition among all our patients was hypertension (all 8 patients). Four of our patients were type-II diabetic. Another 4 patients had a previous history of respiratory disease (chronic), including asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), while coronary artery disease and hyperlipidemia was present in 4 and 1 patient, respectively (Table 1). Five patients had a history of a renal transplant from living related donors, while 3 patients had received their kidneys from cadaveric donors. Post renal transplant period ranged from 4 to 16 years with a mean of 8.6 years (Table 2). Septic markers, including COVID-19 severity markers, were significantly elevated (c-reactive protein, ferritin, d-Dimer, and fibrinogen). Mean APACHE score as 13.88 with a range of 6-20 (Table 2). All patients had been taking immunosuppressant medications and steroids at the time of infection with the virus. Secondary bacterial infection occurred in 3 patients, 3 patients required invasive ventilatory support, and 3 patients received renal replacement therapy, including hemodialysis, after developing acute kidney injury (Table 3). Mean mechanical ventilation days in the 3 intubated patients were 20.19 with a range of 14 to 25 days (Table 3). Four patients required vasopressors to maintain their hemodynamics. One patient died while staying in the ICU giving a mortality of 12.5% in our patient series. (Table 3)