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Immunity to varicella, measles, and mumps in patients evaluated for lung transplantation
Author(s) -
Hostetler Haley P.,
Neely Megan L.,
Lydon Elizabeth,
DanzigerIsakov Lara A.,
Todd Jamie L.,
Palmer Scott M.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
american journal of transplantation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.89
H-Index - 188
eISSN - 1600-6143
pISSN - 1600-6135
DOI - 10.1111/ajt.16602
Subject(s) - medicine , measles , immunity , immunology , immunosuppression , population , varicella zoster virus , transplantation , lung transplantation , vaccination , virus , immune system , environmental health
Vaccine‐preventable viral infections are associated with increased risk of morbidity and mortality in post‐transplant patients on immunosuppression regimens. Therefore, we studied rates of immunity against vaccine‐preventable viruses in lung transplantation (LTx) candidates and their associations with underlying lung disease and clinical characteristics. We retrospectively studied 1025 consecutive adult patients who underwent first‐time evaluation for LTx at a single center between January 2016 and October 2018. Viruses studied included varicella zoster (VZV), measles, and mumps. Young age (17–48 years old) was negatively associated with immunity for VZV (OR 4.54, p < .001), measles (OR 15.45, p < .001) and mumps (OR 3.1, p < .001), as compared to those 65+. Many LTx candidates with cystic fibrosis (CF) had undetectable virus‐specific antibody titers including: 13.5% for VZV, 19.1% for measles, and 15.7% for mumps with significant odds of undetectable titers for VZV (OR 4.54, p < .001) and measles (OR 2.32, p = .010) as compared to those without CF. Therefore, a substantial number of patients undergoing LTx evaluation had undetectable virus‐specific antibody titers. Our results emphasize the importance of screening for immunity to vaccine‐preventable infections in this population and the need for revaccination in selected patients to boost their humoral immunity prior to transplantation.