Elsevier

Transplantation Proceedings

Volume 52, Issue 9, November 2020, Pages 2620-2625
Transplantation Proceedings

COVID-19 Minisymposium: Towards a Strategic Roadmap
Procedural changes
Telemedicine in the Care of Kidney Transplant Recipients With Coronavirus Disease 2019: Case Reports

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.transproceed.2020.07.009Get rights and content

Highlights

  • Telemedicine helped diagnose, triage, and manage transplant patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

  • We proposed a practical workflow process for COVID-19 test and surveillance.

  • Telemedicine assisted patient care from home to inpatient settings, while avoiding emergency department or clinic visits.

  • Telemedicine facilitated care delivery for kidney transplant recipients with COVID-19.

  • Telemedicine provided uninterrupted follow-up care for immunosuppressed patients with prolonged COVID-19 shedding.

Abstract

Kidney transplant recipients who develop symptoms consistent with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are bringing unique challenges to health care professionals. Telemedicine has surged dramatically since the pandemic in effort to maintain patient care and reduce the risk of COVID-19 exposure to patients, health care workers, and the public. Herein we present reports of 3 kidney transplant recipients with COVID-19 who were managed using telemedicine via synchronous video visits integrated with an electronic medical record system, from home to inpatient settings. We demonstrate how telemedicine helped assess, diagnose, triage, and treat patients with COVID-19 while avoiding a visit to an emergency department or outpatient clinic. While there is limited information about the duration of viral shedding for immunosuppressed patients, our findings underscore the importance of using telemedicine in the follow-up care for kidney transplant recipients with COVID-19 who have recovered from symptoms but might have persistently positive nucleic acid tests. Our experience emphasizes the opportunities of telemedicine in the management of kidney transplant recipients with COVID-19 and in the maintenance of uninterrupted follow-up care for such immunosuppressed patients with prolonged viral shedding. Telemedicine may help increase access to care for kidney transplant recipients during and beyond the pandemic as it offers a prompt, safe, and convenient platform in the delivery of care for these patients. Yet, to advance the practice of telemedicine in the field of kidney transplantation, barriers to increasing the widespread implementation of telemedicine should be removed, and research studies are needed to assess the effectiveness of telemedicine in the care of kidney transplant recipients.

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