Pneumococcal bacteremia in cancer patients

✍ Scribed by V. Richard; F. Meunier; P. Auwera; P. Dejace; D. Daneau; J. Klastersky

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 1988
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 389 KB
• Volume: 4
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0393-2990
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00144760

✦ Synopsis

Twenty-eight episodes of Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteremia occurring in 27 cancer patients hospitalized in the Institut Jules Border between July 1979 and April 1985 were reviewed. Ten patients had hematological malignancies and 17 had sol'id tumors (in 7 cases, of the lung). Forty-four per cent of the patients were neutropenic (<1000/~1) and 36% of the patients were in septic shock. In 36% of the patients, no clinical source of S. pneumoniae bacteremia could be found. Seventy-nine (21% patients) received emipirical antibiotic treatment containing a betadactam. Two patients who did not receive any empirical treatment died with,in 12 hours. Overall, 11/27 patients died within the first week, and 8/27 died within the first three days. Mortality in neutropenic patients was not different from that in non-neutropenic patients. In comparison with a similar study performed previously in our institution, there was no difference :in incidence, type of patient, source of bacteremia, or mortality.