Data regarding immunogenicity of mRNA severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccines among kidney transplant recipients in the months following vaccination are lacking. We aimed to investigate humoral immune response at 3-4 months post-vaccination among a cohort of kidney transplant recipients, compared with a control group of dialysis patients. Anti-spike antibodies were tested at 1 and 3-4 months after vaccination. Of 259 kidney transplant recipients tested at a median time of 110 days from second vaccine dose, 99 (38%) were seropositive, compared with 83% (101/122) of control patients. Younger age, better renal function and lower immunosuppression levels were associated with seropositivity. A total of 14% (13/94) of participants seropositive at 1 month became seronegative at follow-up and 11% (18/165) became seropositive. The latter were mainly individuals with higher antibody levels at 1 month. Antibody levels at 3-4 months were significantly reduced in both study groups, although the decline was more pronounced in the control group. Kidney transplant recipients present poor antibody response to mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, with only 38% seropositive at 3-4 months. Nevertheless, the decay in antibody response over time is modest, and some patients may present delayed response, reaching adequate antibody levels at 3-4 months. Low seropositivity rates in this group call for investigating other immunization strategies.
Keywords: COVID-19; antibodies; immune response; kidney transplant; mRNA vaccine.
© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the ERA.