A recent study published in Clinical Microbiology and Infections highlights the effectiveness of vaccination against COVID-19 in patients undergoing renal replacement therapy (RRT). These, in the long term, had significant reductions in morbidity and mortality after three doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Kidney transplant recipients who received all three doses of the vaccine showed a 62% reduction in COVID-19-associated mortality rates.

The research was based on all patients on continuous renal replacement therapy (CRT) from the Finnish Kidney Disease Registry. Each patient was matched with 10 controls, and hazard ratios for COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths based on vaccination status were calculated to estimate vaccine effectiveness (VE), the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP) at the University of Minnesota reported. Researchers examined 5,755 CRT patients compared with more than 57,000 controls. The data cover the period from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2022.

Vaccine Effectiveness

They note that among those with 2 or 3 vaccine doses, vaccine effectiveness against COVID-19 hospitalization was 47% (95% confidence interval [CI], 12% to 68%) in dialysis patients; 50% (95% CI, 26% to 66%) in kidney transplant recipients and 76% (95% CI, 69% to 82%) in controls.

In kidney transplant recipients, but not dialysis patients, more than three vaccine doses reduced COVID-19 mortality by 62% (95% CI, 14% to 83%), the CIDRAP newsletter noted.

Key results of the study

Vaccination recommended

The study supports the recommendations for booster vaccination for kidney transplant recipients, highlighting the importance of prevention in this population vulnerable.