TY - JOUR T1 - COVID-19 in children treated with immunosuppressive medication for kidney diseases JF - Archives of Disease in Childhood JO - Arch Dis Child SP - 798 LP - 801 DO - 10.1136/archdischild-2020-320616 VL - 106 IS - 8 AU - Matko Marlais AU - Tanja Wlodkowski AU - Samhar Al-Akash AU - Petr Ananin AU - Varun Kumar Bandi AU - Veronique Baudouin AU - Olivia Boyer AU - Luciola Vásquez AU - Sukanya Govindan AU - Nakysa Hooman AU - Iftikhar Ijaz AU - Reyner Loza AU - Marta Melgosa AU - Nivedita Pande AU - Lars Pape AU - Anshuman Saha AU - Dmitry Samsonov AU - Michiel F Schreuder AU - Jyoti Sharma AU - Sahar Siddiqui AU - Rajiv Sinha AU - Heather Stewart AU - Velibor Tasic AU - Burkhard Tönshoff AU - Katherine Twombley AU - Kiran Upadhyay AU - Marina Vivarelli AU - Donald J Weaver AU - Robert Woroniecki AU - Franz Schaefer AU - Kjell Tullus Y1 - 2021/08/01 UR - http://adc.bmj.com/content/106/8/798.abstract N2 - Background Children are recognised as at lower risk of severe COVID-19 compared with adults, but the impact of immunosuppression is yet to be determined. This study aims to describe the clinical course of COVID-19 in children with kidney disease taking immunosuppressive medication and to assess disease severity.Methods Cross-sectional study hosted by the European Rare Kidney Disease Reference Network and supported by the European, Asian and International paediatric nephrology societies. Anonymised data were submitted online for any child (age <20 years) with COVID-19 taking immunosuppressive medication for a kidney condition. Study recruited for 16 weeks from 15 March 2020 to 05 July 2020. The primary outcome was severity of COVID-19.Results 113 children were reported in this study from 30 different countries. Median age: 13 years (49% male). Main underlying reasons for immunosuppressive therapy: kidney transplant (47%), nephrotic syndrome (27%), systemic lupus erythematosus (10%). Immunosuppressive medications used include: glucocorticoids (76%), mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) (54%), tacrolimus/ciclosporine A (58%), rituximab/ofatumumab (11%). 78% required no respiratory support during COVID-19 illness, 5% required bi-level positive airway pressure or ventilation. Four children died; all deaths reported were from low-income countries with associated comorbidities. There was no significant difference in severity of COVID-19 based on gender, dialysis status, underlying kidney condition, and type or number of immunosuppressive medications.Conclusions This global study shows most children with a kidney disease taking immunosuppressive medication have mild disease with SARS-CoV-2 infection. We therefore suggest that children on immunosuppressive therapy should not be more strictly isolated than children who are not on immunosuppressive therapy.Data are available upon reasonable request. ER -