The records of critical patients were reviewed retrospectively. Whether these patients used tocilizumab and/or anakinra and their relationship with CMV reactivation were examined. Furthermore, the relationship between CMV reactivation and mortality and anti-cytokine treatment in patients was also examined. A total of 167 critical COVID-19 patients were included in the study, of which 38 (22.7%) were found to be CMV DNA positive. CMV positivity in patients treated with anti-cytokines (31.11%) was found to be significantly higher than in patients who were not treated with it (16.88%) (p:0.033). There was no significant difference in viral load levels (p:0.513). Furthermore, it was determined that anti-cytokine treatment significantly decreased mortality (p: 0.003) and that there was no significant relationship between CMV reactivation and mortality (p: 0.399). Even though CMV reactivation was high in critical COVID-19 patients who received anti-cytokine treatment, positive developments in morbidity and mortality were observed with early diagnosis and effective treatment.
The risk of secondary infection is high in critical patients hospitalized with the diagnosis of COVID-19. Immunosuppressive treatments are commonly used in critical COVID-19 patients, and immune dysfunction and CMV reactivation can be unnoticed in these patients.