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Pulmonary Aspergillosis in Patients with Suspected Ventilator-associated Pneumonia in UK ICUs.

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

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Type

Article

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Authors

Loughlin, Laura 
Hellyer, Thomas P 
White, P Lewis 
McAuley, Danny F 
Conway Morris, Andrew  ORCID logo  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3211-3216

Abstract

Rationale:Aspergillus infection in patients with suspected ventilator-associated pneumonia remains uncharacterized because of the absence of a disease definition and limited access to sensitive diagnostic tests.Objectives: To estimate the prevalence and outcomes of Aspergillus infection in adults with suspected ventilator-associated pneumonia.Methods: Two prospective UK studies recruited 360 critically ill adults with new or worsening alveolar shadowing on chest X-ray and clinical/hematological parameters supporting suspected ventilator-associated pneumonia. Stored serum and BAL fluid were available from 194 nonneutropenic patients and underwent mycological testing. Patients were categorized as having probable Aspergillus infection using a definition comprising clinical, radiological, and mycological criteria. Mycological criteria included positive histology or microscopy, positive BAL fluid culture, galactomannan optical index of 1 or more in BAL fluid or 0.5 or more in serum.Measurements and Main Results: Of 194 patients evaluated, 24 met the definition of probable Aspergillus infection, giving an estimated prevalence of 12.4% (95% confidence interval, 8.1-17.8). All 24 patients had positive galactomannan in serum (n = 4), BAL fluid (n = 16), or both (n = 4); three patients cultured Aspergillus sp. in BAL fluid. Patients with probable Aspergillus infection had a significantly longer median duration of critical care stay (25.5 vs. 15.5 d, P = 0.02). ICU mortality was numerically higher in this group, although this was not statistically significant (33.3% vs. 22.8%; P = 0.23).Conclusions: The estimated prevalence for probable Aspergillus infection in this geographically dispersed multicenter UK cohort indicates that this condition should be considered when investigating patients with suspected ventilator-associated pneumonia, including patient groups not previously recognized to be at high risk of aspergillosis.

Description

Keywords

Aspergillus, critical care, diagnostic tests, prevalence, Adult, Age Distribution, Aged, Aspergillus, Cohort Studies, Comorbidity, Critical Care, Critical Illness, DNA, Fungal, Female, Follow-Up Studies, Humans, Intensive Care Units, Male, Middle Aged, Pneumonia, Ventilator-Associated, Polymerase Chain Reaction, Prevalence, Prospective Studies, Pulmonary Aspergillosis, Radiography, Thoracic, Risk Assessment, Sex Distribution, Statistics, Nonparametric, United Kingdom

Journal Title

Am J Respir Crit Care Med

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

1073-449X
1535-4970

Volume Title

202

Publisher

American Thoracic Society

Rights

All rights reserved
Sponsorship
Wellcome Trust (094949/Z/10/Z)
Wellcome Trust (205214/Z/16/Z)