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Most immunocompromised patients did not receive RSV-specific therapy
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VANCOUVER, Canada — Respiratory syncytial virus-specific therapy was not given to most pediatric immunocompromised patients with RSV who required hospital admission, according to data presented here.
Jennifer Chin, BA, a medical student in the department of infectious disease at Seattle Children’s Hospital, and colleagues evaluated 112 immunocompromised children (median age, 5.7 years) with laboratory-confirmed RSV infection between 2008 and 2013 to determine factors associated with hospitalization, ICU stay, and receipt of ribavirin and/or IV immunoglobulin (IVIG).
Jennifer Chin
Overall, 125 RSV illnesses were identified. Eighty-two patients (73%) were diagnosed as outpatients compared with 40 diagnosed as inpatients. Forty-two percent of all patients had a hematologic malignancy and 81% of those had acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
Among outpatients, hematologic malignancies (P<.01), leukocytosis (P=.01), or fever (P<.01) were all predictors of hospitalization.
Thirty-five percent of all patients were hospitalized for RSV and 7% received supportive care only. Antibiotics were given to 52% of patients; ribavirin was given to 29% of patients; and 8% received IVIG.
Ten percent of outpatients admitted to the hospital required ICU support. There was a 2% mortality rate among patients.
“In conclusion, we think that an outpatient treatment would be very effective because most of the patients, especially with cancer, were being treated maybe once or twice a week at the outpatient clinic, and didn’t have the opportunity to receive any sort of specific antiviral treatment, they were mostly receiving supportive care,” Chin told Infectious Diseases in Children. “If we were able to have an outpatient treatment for these patients, it would be beneficial because although we had a low mortality rate, a lot of patients had to delay their treatment and/or come back more often.” — by Amber Cox
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.