# COVID-19 epidemic investigation study of a follow-up cohort of patients with diabetic kidney disease

## TL;DR

This study examines how COVID-19 affects patients with diabetic kidney disease in China, finding that vaccination reduces infection and severity.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into the impact of vaccination on DKD patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.

## Key findings

- 73.68% of DKD patients were infected with COVID-19, with 6.63% developing novel coronavirus pneumonia.
- Vaccinated patients had lower rates of severe illness and mortality compared to unvaccinated patients.
- The diabetic nephropathy group had the lowest vaccination rate and highest mortality.

## Abstract

The impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on diabetic kidney disease (DKD) patients in China is not fully understood. This study aimed to investigate infection status in a DKD cohort post-renal biopsy and analyze vaccination and infection rates, as well as symptom severity, across various renal pathologies in DKD patients.

This epidemiological survey, centered on COVID-19, employed a Chinese DKD and renal puncture follow-up cohort. A customized questionnaire enabled standardized data gathering. It collected data on clinical characteristics, vaccination and infection statuses, and diverse pathological types. The study analyzed the relationship between vaccination and infection statuses across various pathological types, evaluating characteristics and treatment outcomes in patients with infections.

In total, 437 patients with DKD from 26 Chinese provinces were followed up for a median of 44.6 ± 20 months. COVID-19 infection, vaccination, and novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) rates were 73.68%, 59.3%, and 6.63%, respectively. Ten patients with NCP had severe pneumonia or died of COVID-19. Renal pathology revealed that 167 (38.22%) patients had diabetic nephropathy (DN), 171 (39.13%) had non-diabetic renal disease (NDRD), and 99 had DN and NDRD (22.65%). The DN group had the lowest vaccination (54.5%), highest all-cause mortality (3.6%), and highest endpoint rates (34.10%). Compared to patients who were not vaccinated pre-infection (117 cases), vaccinated patients (198 cases) had reduced NCP (6.6% vs. 13.7%), severity (1.0% vs. 3.4%), and endpoint (9.10% vs. 31.60%) rates.

Vaccination can prevent infection and diminish COVID-19 severity in patients with DKD; therefore, increasing vaccination rates is particularly important.

ClinicalTrails.gov, NCT05888909.