TY - JOUR
T1 - Presentation and Mortality of Cryptococcal Infection Varies by Predisposing Illness
T2 - A Retrospective Cohort Study
AU - Hevey, Matthew A.
AU - George, Ige A.
AU - Raval, Krunal
AU - Powderly, William G.
AU - Spec, Andrej
N1 - Funding Information:
Funding: Research reported in this publication was supported by the Washington University Institute of Clinical and Translational Sciences grant UL1TR002345 from the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official view of the NIH. Conflict of Interest: WGP reports grant support from Merck Labs and consulting work with Merck Labs and Gilead. AS reports grant support and consulting work with Astellas, consulting work with Viamet, and consulting work with Minnetronix.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier Inc.
PY - 2019/8
Y1 - 2019/8
N2 - Background: Cryptococcal epidemiology is changing in the modern antiretroviral era, and immune status informs outcomes. We describe the differences in clinical presentation and mortality of cryptococcosis by immune status in the antiretroviral therapy era. Methods: We conducted a single-center retrospective cohort study of patients diagnosed with cryptococcosis from 2002 through 2017. Data included demographics, clinical features, diagnostics, and mortality. Results: We identified 304 patients with Cryptococcus neoformans infections: 105 (35%) were people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), 41 (13%) had a history of transplantation, and 158 (52%) were non-HIV nontransplant (NHNT). Age analysis showed that people living with HIV were younger (40 years) than transplant (53 years) and NHNT (61 years) (P < .001). Fevers and headache were more common in people living with HIV (70% and 57%) than in transplant (49% and 29%) and NHNT (49% and 38%) (P = .003 and P = .001), respectively. Meningitis was more common in people living with HIV (68%) than in transplant recipients (32%) or NHNT (39%, P < .001). Disseminated cryptococcosis was more common in people living with HIV (97%) as compared with transplant (66%) or NHNT (73%) (P < .001). Time to diagnosis from hospitalization was longer for transplant (median 2 days, interquartile range [IQR] ± 9 days) and NHNT patients (median 2 days, IQR ± 7 days) as compared with people living with HIV (median 1 day, IQR ± 2 days) (P = .003). NHNT patients had a higher risk of 90-day mortality (hazard ratio 3.3; 95% confidence interval, 1.9-5.8) as compared with people living with HIV. Conclusions: The majority of cryptococcosis occurs in NHNT patients. NHNT patients had more localized pulmonary cryptococcosis and significantly higher 90-day mortality. Cryptococcosis in NHNT patients appears to be a distinct entity that needs further study and requires a higher level of clinical suspicion than it currently receives.
AB - Background: Cryptococcal epidemiology is changing in the modern antiretroviral era, and immune status informs outcomes. We describe the differences in clinical presentation and mortality of cryptococcosis by immune status in the antiretroviral therapy era. Methods: We conducted a single-center retrospective cohort study of patients diagnosed with cryptococcosis from 2002 through 2017. Data included demographics, clinical features, diagnostics, and mortality. Results: We identified 304 patients with Cryptococcus neoformans infections: 105 (35%) were people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), 41 (13%) had a history of transplantation, and 158 (52%) were non-HIV nontransplant (NHNT). Age analysis showed that people living with HIV were younger (40 years) than transplant (53 years) and NHNT (61 years) (P < .001). Fevers and headache were more common in people living with HIV (70% and 57%) than in transplant (49% and 29%) and NHNT (49% and 38%) (P = .003 and P = .001), respectively. Meningitis was more common in people living with HIV (68%) than in transplant recipients (32%) or NHNT (39%, P < .001). Disseminated cryptococcosis was more common in people living with HIV (97%) as compared with transplant (66%) or NHNT (73%) (P < .001). Time to diagnosis from hospitalization was longer for transplant (median 2 days, interquartile range [IQR] ± 9 days) and NHNT patients (median 2 days, IQR ± 7 days) as compared with people living with HIV (median 1 day, IQR ± 2 days) (P = .003). NHNT patients had a higher risk of 90-day mortality (hazard ratio 3.3; 95% confidence interval, 1.9-5.8) as compared with people living with HIV. Conclusions: The majority of cryptococcosis occurs in NHNT patients. NHNT patients had more localized pulmonary cryptococcosis and significantly higher 90-day mortality. Cryptococcosis in NHNT patients appears to be a distinct entity that needs further study and requires a higher level of clinical suspicion than it currently receives.
KW - Adult
KW - Cryptococcus
KW - HIV
KW - Mortality
KW - Presentation
KW - Prognosis
KW - Transplant
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85067241271&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.amjmed.2019.04.026
DO - 10.1016/j.amjmed.2019.04.026
M3 - Article
C2 - 31077652
AN - SCOPUS:85067241271
SN - 0002-9343
VL - 132
SP - 977-983.e1
JO - American Journal of Medicine
JF - American Journal of Medicine
IS - 8
ER -