Bacterial Infections During Hospital Stay and Their Impact on Mortality After Lung Transplantation: A Single-Center Study

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of the study was to assess the impact of bacterial infection during hospital stay on long-term follow-up.

Materials and methods: This was a retrospective single-center study of 97 recipients of lung transplantations performed between December 2004 and June 2016 at a single center. Information about age, sex, underlying lung disease, and date and type of procedure was gathered from patients' charts. Immunosuppressive treatment has been analyzed individually among the cohort. Microbiological evaluation included the presence of infection, bacterial species in recipients and donors, as well as type of biological material.

Results: During a mean hospitalization time of 57 days (range 4-398 days), 67 patients (69%) were diagnosed with bacterial infection. There were 120 episodes of infection caused by 32 species of bacteria. The most common were Pseudomonas aeruginosa (27%), Acinetobacter baumanii (21%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (10%) and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia (11%). Analysis revealed that 39 patients developed bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (43%). Patients with A baumanii had a lower probability of survival than the rest of the population (P < .05). Patients treated with mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors had a higher probability of survival.

Conclusions: Infection with A baumanii affects lung transplant recipients' survival. Incorporating sirolimus could be beneficial for the lung transplant recipients' survival.