Clostridium Difficile-Associated Disease in Allogeneic Transplant Patients.

Allogeneic transplant (allo) patients (pts) are at high risk for Clostridium difficile-associated disease (CDAD), yet there are few studies evaluating CDAD in allo pts. We carried out a retrospective chart review of all allo pts who had CDAD on a transplant (tx) unit between 8/01 and 7/03. 37 pts were identified who had CDAD during tx hospitalization (hosp) or after tx during the study period. 17 (46%) were admitted for initial tx, 13 (35%) for infection, and 7 (19%) for other reasons. 15 (40%) had acute leukemia, 6 (16%) lymphoma, 4 (11%) myelodisplastic syndrome, and 12 (32%) other underlying diseases. On admission, 17 (46%) pts were in complete remission, 4 (11%) in partial remission, 7 (19%) in relapse, and 9 (24%) presented with refractory disease. 5 pts (14%) had CDAD before day 0 (median d-2, range d-9 to d-1) and 32 pts (86%) had CDAD after tx (median d+49, d0 to d+3185). In the 60 days prior to CDAD, pts had median 1 (0–4) prior hosp and 15 days (1–50) hospitalized; 36 pts (97%) received antibiotics, 35 (95%) immunosuppressants, 33 (89%) antimotility/narcotic agents, 31 (84%) gastric acid suppression, 23 (62%) chemo, and 14 (38%) TBI. Within 48 hours of CDAD, 31 (86%) pts had diarrhea, 12 (33%) fever, 10 (28%) abdominal tenderness, 7 (19%) abdominal distention, and 7 (19%) hypothermia. 22 pts (59%) had either moderate or severe CDAD. 25 (68%) pts were treated for their primary episode of CDAD with metronizadole (met), 2 (5%) with vancomycin (vanc), 8 (22%) with met and vanc, and 2 (5%) were not treated for CDAD. 32 (86%) pts responded to therapy (median 2 days, range 0–25 days). Of the 32 pts who had CDAD post allo, 3 (9%) had gut graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) before CDAD and 8/29 (28%) developed gut GVHD after CDAD. Those 8 pts developed CDAD median d+114 (range +1 to +278) and gut GVHD d+131 (+1 to +454), with gut GVHD coming median 11 days (0 to 176) after CDAD. 7 pts (19%) died before discharge. The median survival time for all pts was 79 days after CDAD and 205 days after tx. Of the 30 (81%) pts discharged alive, 10 (33%) had recurrent CDAD episodes (median 1, range 1–3). When compared to mild CDAD, patients with severe CDAD had an increased risk of death at one year after CDAD (OR 3.3; CI 1.4–7.6). CDAD in allo pts may be associated with an increased risk of gut GVHD, death, and other adverse outcomes.