The Clinical Course of COVID-19 Pneumonia in a 19-Year-Old Man on Intravenous Immunoglobulin Replacement Therapy for X-Linked Agammaglobulinemia.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND Since the emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), patients with the illness have presented with considerable variation in severity. Some infected individuals present mild or no symptoms, while others present severe illness with some fatal outcomes. Multiple lines of management have been suggested for critically ill patients, such as intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) and steroids. IVIG is the main treatment for patients with X-linked agammaglobulinemia. Multiple studies have reported that these patients have excellent outcomes when they contract COVID-19. This report describes the clinical course of COVID-19 pneumonia due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in a 19-year-old man on IVIG replacement therapy for X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA). CASE REPORT A patient with XLA receiving a monthly dose of IVIG and having bronchiectasis managed by prophylactic azithromycin presented with fever, shortness of breath, productive cough, and diarrhea. He was admitted to our hospital with SARS-CoV-2 infection. His treatment course for COVID-19 was uncomplicated and had excellent results. He completed a 10-day course of piperacillin/tazobactam and his symptoms resolved 3 days after admission, without complications, oxygen supplementation, or intensive care unit admission. CONCLUSIONS Patients with XLA have weakened immunity and therefore may present with an infection as a first symptom. This report describes the mild course of COVID-19 pneumonia in an immunologically vulnerable patient with XLA who presented with SARS-CoV-2 infection while undergoing IVIG replacement therapy. Currently, IVIG is one of many supportive immune therapies undergoing clinical evaluation in patients with severe COVID-19.