COVID-19 Vaccine for Cystic Fibrosis Patients is Supported by a Recent Study

According to a recent study, patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) appeared to have antibody responses that were comparable to those seen in the general population after receiving COVID-19 vaccination. The aftereffects of the research supported vaccination in this population and called for additional efforts in the CF community.

Patients with CF have compromised lungs, liver, pancreas, kidney, and intestines, making them more susceptible to infection than the general population. As a result, patients with CF may have a higher risk of severe COVID-19 complications.

Specialists led by Georgene Hergenroeder MD, Division of Pneumonic and Sleep Medicine, Seattle Children’s Hospital, expected to look at the seroprevalence and clinical characteristics of severe acute respiratory disorder Covid 2 (SARS-CoV-2) contamination in youngsters with cystic fibrosis, as well as to evaluate the antibody responses following SARS-CoV-2 infection or vaccination.

Coronavirus and Cystic Fibrosis

Children and adolescents with CF who were receiving treatment at Seattle Children’s Hospital between July 2020 and February 2021 were included in the study. Through intake and weekly surveys, patients were given information about SARS-CoV-2 exposures, viral/respiratory illnesses, and symptoms.

SARS-CoV-2 serostatus was determined by the team using nucleocapsid and spike IgG tests at enrollment, six months, and eleven months (±2 months). In particular, values above 0 were guaranteed for analysis by adding 1 AU to the spike IgG measurements.

For comparison to vaccine responses, the values were changed over completely to Binding Antibody Units (BAU). Examiners compared demographic and clinical factors between seronegative and seropositive patients using statistical tests.

The proportion of participants who were infected with SARS-CoV-2 over time was estimated using survival analysis, and CDC seroprevalence data were used for evaluation and were adjusted to accurately represent the population based on data from the US census.

Analyzing Seroprevalence and Antibody Responses

14 (11%) of the 125 participants in the study had SARS-CoV-2 antibodies that were positive, indicating either a recent or previous infection. There were a number of important results from the data analysis.

Patients who were seropositive were bound to distinguish as Hispanic (29% versus 8%, P = 0.04). Compared to seronegative participants, these patients also had a higher rate of pulmonary exacerbations that necessitated oral antibiotics in the year prior to the study (71 percent vs. 41 percent, P = 0.04).

The information showed 35.7% of the seropositive patients were asymptomatic, while 42.9% reported mild symptoms, including cough and nasal congestion. The majority of cases exhibited mild or no symptoms, so it may be difficult to differentiate SARS-CoV-2 infection from baseline respiratory symptoms in this population, according to the researchers.

Patients who received vaccination had approximately 10-fold higher levels of anti spike protein IgG than those who had a natural infection alone, according to the study’s analysis of antibody responses (P 0.0001). The fact that these antibody levels were comparable to those previously observed in the general population suggests that vaccination can elicit a robust immune response comparable to that seen in people who do not have CF.

The study focused on the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in children with CF as well as its clinical manifestations. Additionally, the data indicated that a significant number of people with the infection experience only mild or no symptoms, making it difficult to differentiate infectious symptoms from baseline respiratory symptoms.

“Prior studies suggested that people with CF exhibit impaired antibody responses to influenza and pneumococcal vaccination,” investigators wrote. “In contrast, our findings suggest that COVID-19 vaccines responses in children and young adults with CF are similar to those of the general population.”