Table 1.
Comparison of patient characteristics between three BSI bacteria clusters (FAV, INT, ADV). Unless otherwise specified, variable values refer to day 1 of a BSI episode. The phase of HSCT was defined from start of the conditioning regimen until 100 days after transplantation. The Charlson comorbidity index was used to assess the overall comorbidity burden using the updated Charlson comorbidity index with a score of at least three defining high risk [17, 18]. The common terminology criteria for adverse events (CTCAE) were used to grade mucositis [19]. Severe neutropenia was defined as an absolute neutrophil count of less than 500/μl. p-values < 0.005 indicate differences between the three clusters. After a significant Kruskal-Wallis test, we used the Dunn-Bonferroni post hoc test to assign pairwise significant differences (†/‡). After a significant chi-square test, significant differences were assigned via post hoc test using the Bonferroni-correction (*). HCT-CI, hematopoietic cell transplantation-specific comorbidity index; ICU, intensive care unit; N/A, not available
| All BSI (n=637) | FAV (n=347) | INT (n=274) | ADV (n=16) | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, median (range) | 54 (17–87) | 52 (19–82)† | 56 (17–87)† | 60.5 (32–74) | 0.003 |
| Female sex, n (%) | 235 (36.9) | 129 (37.2) | 102 (37.2) | 4 (25.0) | 0.607 |
| Phase of disease, n (%) | 0.366 | ||||
| Newly diagnosed/under first line therapy | 331 (52.0) | 190 (54.8) | 134 (48.9) | 7 (43.8) | |
| In complete remission | 56 (8.8) | 33 (9.5) | 22 (8.0) | 1 (6.3) | |
| Refractory disease/relapse | 250 (39.2) | 124 (35.7) | 118 (43.1) | 8 (50.0) | |
| Curative treatment approach, n (%) | 538 (84.5) | 298 (85.9) | 229 (83.6) | 11 (68.8) | 0.157 |
| Number of therapy lines, n (%) | 0.018 | ||||
| First line | 288 (45.2) | 178 (51.3)* | 104 (38.0)* | 6 (37.5) | |
| Second line | 200 (31.4) | 95 (27.4) | 100 (36.5) | 5 (31.3) | |
| Further line | 149 (23.4) | 74 (21.3) | 70 (25.5) | 5 (31.3) | |
| In the phase of HSCT, n (%) | 207 (32.5) | 91 (26.2)* | 111 (40.5)* | 5 (31.3) | <0.001 |
| HSCT in the past, n (%) | 130 (20.4) | 77 (22.2) | 49 (17.9) | 4 (25.0) | 0.375 |
| Comorbidities, n (%) | |||||
| Diabetes mellitus | 88 (13.8) | 50 (14.4) | 36 (13.1) | 2 (12.5) | 0.891 |
| Heart disease | 139 (21.8) | 77 (22.2) | 56 (20.4) | 6 (37.5) | 0.267 |
| Liver disease | 43 (6.8) | 18 (5.2) | 25 (9.1) | 0 (0.0) | 0.084 |
| Lung disease | 54 (8.5) | 31 (8.9) | 21 (7.7) | 2 (12.5) | 0.719 |
| Renal failure | 70 (11.0) | 44 (12.7) | 26 (9.5) | 0 (0.0) | 0.164 |
| Charlson comorbidity index, median (range) | 2 (0–10) | 2 (0–10) | 2 (0–10) | 2 (2–6) | 0.484 |
| Hospital admission within previous 90 days, n (%) | 491 (77.1) | 263 (75.8) | 215 (78.5) | 13 (81.3) | 0.667 |
| ICU admission within previous 90 days, n (%) | 40 (6.3) | 20 (5.8) | 19 (6.9) | 1 (6.3) | 0.837 |
| Indwelling central catheter, n (%) | 522 (81.9) | 275 (79.3) | 232 (84.7) | 15 (93.8) | 0.101 |
| Parenteral nutrition, n (%) | 84 (13.2) | 40 (11.5) | 43 (15.7) | 1 (6.3) | 0.222 |
| Immunosuppressive therapy, n (%) | 199 (31.2) | 89 (25.6)* | 105 (38.3)* | 5 (31.2) | 0.003 |
| Corticosteroids within previous 7 days, n (%) | 260 (42.7)(N/A=28) | 145 (43.8)(N/A=16) | 107 (40.7)(N/A=11) | 8 (53.3)(N/A=1) | 0.523 |
| Chemotherapy within previous 30 days, n (%) | 502 (78.8) | 264 (76.1) | 224 (81.8) | 14 (87.5) | 0.158 |
| Severe (grade 3/4) mucositis at BSI, n (%) | 72 (11.3) | 36 (10.4) | 34 (12.4) | 2 (12.5) | 0.721 |
| Severe neutropenia, n (%) | 463 (72.7) | 240 (69.2) | 209 (76.3) | 14 (87.5) | 0.057 |
| Duration of severe neutropenia before BSI (days), median (range) | 7 (0–204) | 6 (0–204)† | 11 (0–204)† | 17.5 (0–100) | <0.001 |
| Creatinine (mg/dl), median (range) | 0.8 (0.2–7.4) | 0.8 (0.3–5.1) | 0.8 (0.2–7.4) | 1.2 (0.4–2.4) | 0.159 |
| CRP (mg/dl), median (range) | 6.3 (0.0–50.7) | 5.1 (0.0–50.7)†,‡ | 7.4 (0.1–49.5)† | 11.9 (0.2–48.2)‡ | 0.001 |
| Albumin (g/dl), median (range) | 3.3 (1.5–4.8)(N/A=20) | 3.4 (1.7–4.8)(N/A=9)† | 3.2 (1.5–4.7)(N/A=11)† | 3.1(1.7–3.8) | <0.001 |
Significant values (p-value <0.05) are marked in bold letters to highlight statistical significance