Open AccessManaging active iupus nephritis during COVID-19 pandemic
Author(s) -
Joyita Bharati,
Manish Rathi,
Raja Ramachandran,
Aman Sharma,
Ritambhra Nada,
Harbir Singh Kohli
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
indian journal of nephrology/indian journal of nephrology
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.317
H-Index - 24
eISSN - 1998-3662
pISSN - 0971-4065
DOI - 10.4103/ijn.ijn_301_20
Subject(s) - hydroxychloroquine , medicine , immunosuppression , pandemic , lupus nephritis , covid-19 , intensive care medicine , respiratory distress , immunology , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty) , surgery
India is seeing a rapid rise in coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19). Immunosuppression is a possible risk factor for severe COVID-19, although their exact interaction is unclear. A total of 13 cases with active lupus nephritis (LN, with or without extra-renal manifestations) were managed with intense immunosuppression between January 2020 and June 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic at our center. There were no other comorbidities in any patient. All patients received hydroxychloroquine as a part of standard of care. Vigorous precautionary measures were taken for preventing infection in all. One patient developed acute respiratory distress syndrome but was tested negative for COVID-19. None of the other 12 patients developed symptoms suggestive of COVID-19. We report safe management of patients with active LN with intense immunosuppression along with vigorous precautions amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The role of hydroxychloroquine along with timely precautions needs to be further explored as protective measures against COVID-19 among systemic lupus erythematosus patients.