COVID-19 in patients with chronic kidney disease: a 2-year study of incidence and mortality in relation to the variants of concern waves in Brazil

ABSTRACT Background Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a risk factor for severe coronavirus disease (COVID-19). In Brazil, the disease is the 10th highest cause of death. We evaluated the epidemiological impact of COVID-19 in CDK and non-CDK patients. Methods Positive patients for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) from 2020 to 2022 were classified according to the severity of COVID-19 and the numbers of cases and deaths were correlated to each wave of SARS-CoV-2 variants in Brazil. Results We compared all variables, and our data show that CDK significantly increased the mortality rate among patients, especially before COVID-19 vaccination, in comparison with non-CKD patients. Conclusions CKD patients had a significantly increased mortality rate compared with non-CKD.