None were lymphopenic ( 1000 cells per microliter; to convert to cells??109 per liter, multiply by 0

None were lymphopenic ( 1000 cells per microliter; to convert to cells??109 per liter, multiply by 0.001) in screening in the 2 2 months prior to the start of COVID-19 complaints. (0.1-1.0 nOD) to high ( 1.0 nOD). In the week following blood sampling, patients packed in digital questionnaires regarding their characteristics, current MS complaints, and COVID-19 symptoms. Other MS-specific data were retrieved from your medical files. Groups were compared with the Mann-Whitney test (for continuous data) or the Pearson 2 test (categorical data). The level of significance was set at .05, and SPSS version 26.0 (IBM) was utilized for data analysis. Results A total of 1778 patients were contacted, and 546 patients were included (imply [SD] age, 46.9 [12.1] years; 388 women [71.1%]). Additional baseline characteristics are explained in the Table. In 64 Duocarmycin GA patients (11.7%), SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were detected. Thirty-five patients experienced COVID-19, as established by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) screening (Physique, A). Of the patients positive by PCR, 4 (11%) tested unfavorable for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Table. Baseline and COVID-19 Characteristics thead th rowspan=”2″ valign=”top” align=”left” scope=”col” colspan=”1″ Characteristic /th th colspan=”3″ valign=”top” align=”left” scope=”colgroup” rowspan=”1″ Patients, No. (%) /th th valign=”top” colspan=”1″ align=”left” scope=”colgroup” rowspan=”1″ Total (N?=?546) /th th valign=”top” align=”left” scope=”col” rowspan=”1″ colspan=”1″ SARS-CoV-2 antibody positive (n?=?64) /th th valign=”top” align=”left” scope=”col” rowspan=”1″ colspan=”1″ SARS-CoV-2 antibody negative (n?=?482) /th /thead Age, mean (SD), y46.9 (12.1)46.3 (12.6)46.9 (12.1)Women388 (71.1)43 (67.2)345 (71.6)Men158 (28.9)21 (32.8)137 (28.4)Excess weight, mean (SD), kga75.4 (25.1)74.2 (12.7)75.6 (26.4)Years since diagnosis, median (interquartile range)12 (6-18)11 (5-21)12 (6-17)SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction test performed, No.14838110 Positive35 (23.6)31 (82.6)4 (3.6) Negative113 (76.4)7 (18.4)106 (96.4) Open in a separate windows Abbreviation: SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. aNot all answers were total. Open in a separate window Figure. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Antibody Response in Patients With Multiple Sclerosis With Positive Results on Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Antibody TestingA, Time between the positive PCR (at month 0) and the SARS-CoV-2 total antibody test. In 4 patients, no SARS-CoV-2 antibodies could be detected. None were lymphopenic ( 1000 cells per microliter; to convert to cells??109 per liter, multiply by 0.001) in screening in the 2 2 months prior to the start of COVID-19 complaints. The patient taking Duocarmycin GA ocrelizumab was B-cell depleted prior to COVID-19 and experienced received 4 cycles of ocrelizumab. B, SARS-CoV-2 antibody response in patients with positive results on PCR and/or antibody screening who were receiving different disease-modifying therapies. The maximum response that could be measured was 2.5 normalized optical density (nOD) units, with a cutoff of 0.1 for seropositivity. The 2 2 patients treated with alemtuzumab received their last course 43 and 29 months prior to SARS-CoV-2 antibody sampling, respectively. One individual with an autologous stem cell transplant (aSCT) was treated 10 months prior to SARS-CoV-2 antibody sampling. Nine patients Duocarmycin GA who were antibody positive (14%) did not experience any symptoms suggestive of COVID-19. The most frequently reported symptom in those positive for SARS-CoV-2 Rabbit Polyclonal to BUB1 antibodies was a loss of Duocarmycin GA taste and/or smell (30 of 64 patients [47%]), while only 14 of 482 patients (2.9%) without SARS-CoV-2 antibodies reported these symptoms. To our knowledge, there were no COVID-19 fatalities in this MS populace. Of all 546 patients, 405 (74.2%) were receiving disease-modifying therapy. In these, SARS-CoV-2 antibodies were less prevalent in patients using injectable drugs (interferon and glatiramer acetate) than patients with other treatments (3 of 69 [4%] vs 44 of 336 [13.1%]; em P /em ?=?.04). The median SARS-CoV-2 antibody response in patients treated with ocrelizumab was lower in comparison with other patients (0.2 [interquartile range, 0.1-0.4] nOD vs Duocarmycin GA 2.5 [interquartile range, 0.6-2.5] nOD; em P /em ? ?.001; Physique, B). All patients taking ocrelizumab were B-cell depleted, as measured at a median (range) of.