Reinfection of SARS-CoV-2 in kidney transplant recipient

Abstract

Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was first reported from Wuhan, China, and later became a pandemic. While infection is very common, reinfection with SARS-CoV-2 is rare because immune responses from past infection reduce the risk of reinfection. In this report, we describe the case of a kidney transplant recipient who was reinfected with SARS-CoV-2 after successfully recovering from moderate COVID-19, 6 months ago. The first infection occurred in September 2020 while the reinfection occurred in April 2021. Our case highlights that kidney transplant recipients can be reinfected with COVID-19, and therefore, recovery from a primary infection should not be taken as license to shun COVID-related precautions. The disease severity, clinical course, and outcome of reinfection may be different from the first infection.

Keywords

• coronavirus disease-2019
• kidney transplant recipient
• reinfection