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Background The increasing use of immunosuppressive and cytotoxic therapies leads to a growing number of opportunistic infections especially Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PCP). The purpose of our study was to describe the population involved, and to assess clinical, biological, and mortality data. Methods We collected retrospectively the whole medical file of all PCP cases diagnosed in non-HIV infected patients, in two French University Hospitals in the last decade (1999-2009). Diagnosis was made on standard coloration and/or immunofluorescence analysis of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BAL). Results Forty-one patients were included in the study, mean age 56 (±12.5) years, sex ratio 0.71 men/woman. Underlying diseases were as follow: 12 patients (29%) were renal transplant recipients, 13 (32%) were treated for solid cancers, and 16 (39%) suffered from various diseases (three allogenic bone-marrow transplantation, 11 hematological malignancies, one pulmonary transplantation, one vasculitis). Twelve patients died (i.e. 29%). Median lymphocyte count was 542/mm(3). More than 85% patients received corticosteroids at a median cumulative 6-month dose of 2700mg. Seven patients (17%) had a PCP prophylaxis. Clinical worsening at day 5 (P Discussion/conclusion The prognosis factors found are mostly linked to the patients' clinical severity. We would like to highlight: first, near to 30% mortality rate, secondly, a lack of prophylaxis in 34 patients, reflecting the difficulty to define PCP's risk in non HIV-infected patients.

We describe the risk factors and microbiological findings of an outbreak of Clostridium difficile (CD)-related diarrhoea in the Medical Oncology Department of the Curie Institute. Screening for CD in stools was performed on 59 patients with diarrhoea and 146 patients without diarrhoea. Toxin secretion, serotyping (enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay) and genotyping (AP-polymerase chain reaction) were performed on 39 CD strains from 32 patients. The risk factors for toxigenic CD-positive diarrhoea were also investigated. Twenty-seven (46%) patients with diarrhoea and 12 (8%) patients without diarrhoea were CD-positive (P

We performed a prospective assessment of the current epidemiology of bacteraemia in cancer patients hospitalized in 70 different adult and paediatric haematology and oncology departments. Over a 1-month period, microbiologists from 54 hospitals collected clinical data relating to patients with at least one positive blood culture. In addition, all strains isolated were assessed for their in vitro susceptibility to three broad-spectrum cephalosporins suitable for empirical treatment in cancer patients: cefpirome, cefepime and ceftazidime. A total of 494 different strains were isolated from 1,038 blood cultures taken from 403 different patients. Seventeen strains were isolated from 13 patients with various nonmalignant diseases, and these cases were excluded from analysis. Overall, 330 (69.2%) of the strains were isolated in patients with haematological malignancy and 147 (30.8%), in patients with solid tumours. There was no difference in the distribution of the species involved in bacteraemia between patients with haematological malignancy and patients with solid tumours: coagulase-negative staphylococci were the leading pathogens (50.6% and 44.9%, respectively), followed by E. coli (11.2% and 12.2% respectively), S. aureus (6.3% vs 7.5%), streptococci (4.8% vs 5.4%) and P. aeruginosa (5.2% vs 4.8%). All other species accounted for less than 5% in both groups. There was no difference in the strain distribution with age (> or = 15 years vs < 15 years) or type of underlying disease. S. aureus and Enterobacteriaceae bacteraemia were more frequent in patients with end-stage disease, while oral streptococci, Enterobacteriaceae and P. aeruginosa infections were more frequent in patients who were severely neutropenic. Digestive tract decontamination was associated with increased frequency of oral streptococci and decreased frequency of Enterobacteriaceae infections. All three cephalosporins demonstrated similar activity against E. coli, while cefpirome and cefepime appeared to be more effective against other Enterobacteriaceae. Ceftazidime had better activity against P. aeruginosa. Cefpirome was the most effective against Gram-positive cocci, especially oral streptococci and methicillin-susceptible staphylococci.

We performed a prospective assessment of the current epidemiology of bacteraemia in cancer patients hospitalized in 70 different adult and paediatric haematology and oncology departments. Over a 1-month period, microbiologists from 54 hospitals collected clinical data relating to patients with at least one positive blood culture. In addition, all strains isolated were assessed for their in vitro susceptibility to three broad-spectrum cephalosporins suitable for empirical treatment in cancer patients: cefpirome, cefepime and ceftazidime. A total of 494 different strains were isolated from 1,038 blood cultures taken from 403 different patients. Seventeen strains were isolated from 13 patients with various nonmalignant diseases, and these cases were excluded from analysis. Overall, 330 (69.2%) of the strains were isolated in patients with haematological malignancy and 147 (30.8%), in patients with solid tumours. There was no difference in the distribution of the species involved in bacteraemia between patients with haematological malignancy and patients with solid tumours: coagulase-negative staphylococci were the leading pathogens (50.6% and 44.9%, respectively), followed by E. coli (11.2% and 12.2% respectively), S. aureus (6.3% vs 7.5%), streptococci (4.8% vs 5.4%) and P. aeruginosa (5.2% vs 4.8%). All other species accounted for less than 5% in both groups. There was no difference in the strain distribution with age (or = 15 years vs15 years) or type of underlying disease. S. aureus and Enterobacteriaceae bacteraemia were more frequent in patients with end-stage disease, while oral streptococci, Enterobacteriaceae and P. aeruginosa infections were more frequent in patients who were severely neutropenic. Digestive tract decontamination was associated with increased frequency of oral streptococci and decreased frequency of Enterobacteriaceae infections. All three cephalosporins demonstrated similar activity against E. coli, while cefpirome and cefepime appeared to be more effective against other Enterobacteriaceae. Ceftazidime had better activity against P. aeruginosa. Cefpirome was the most effective against Gram-positive cocci, especially oral streptococci and methicillin-susceptible staphylococci.

From 1 August 1978 through 31 December 1982, 98 hematology-oncology patients had positive cultures for Pseudomonas aeruginosa serotype O16; 22 of these patients developed bacteremia, and this bacteremia was associated with the occurrence of extensive perineal cellulitis in 10 patients (45.5%). Seventeen bacteremic patients died. The epidemic strain differed from other P. aeruginosa organisms isolated at the hospital by its resistance to all antibiotics available at that time (ticarcillin, piperacillin, azlocillin, tobramycin, ceftizoxime, ceftriaxone, moxalactam, ceftazidime, and fosfomycin). Univariate analysis showed the following factors to be significantly associated with P. aeruginosa O16 bacteremia: the severity of granulocytopenia at the time of the bacteremia, more days with fever, the administration of ticarcillin or an aminoglycoside, the receipt of a greater number of antimicrobial agents for a longer period of time before documentation of the bacteremia, and the occurrence of cellulitis. Logistic regression analysis showed that duration of fever, duration of bacteremia, and the number of antimicrobial agents administered before documentation of the bacteremia were the best predictors of P. aeruginosa O16 bacteremia. In a prospective study of the acquisition of P. aeruginosa by hematology-oncology patients, 1,149 specimens (throat and rectal swabs) from 270 patients and 201 specimens from their washbasin drains were collected. On only three occasions was the epidemic strain isolated from both the patient and his or her washbasin, but in each case the colonization of the patient preceded the isolation of the strain from the washbasin. The transmission of any P. aeruginosa organism from washbasin drain to patient could not be documented. Contact isolation precautions from the Centers for Disease Control were used for all hematology-oncology patients colonized or infected with P. aeruginosa after 7 January 1983. No case of P. aeruginosa O16 bacteremia has occurred at Hotel Dieu since July 1984.

The level and duration of granulocytopenia in cancer patients treated with cytostatics drugs are the most important prognostic factors [3]. High dosages of beta-lactam antibiotics have been shown to have myelosuppressive effects [9], delaying or inhibiting the recovery of the polymorphonuclear phagocyte system. The underlying mechanisms of such adverse reactions are still a matter of debate, some authors being in favor of a peripheral immunopathological response with the production of specific antibiodies against the polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) [8], others favoring a direct toxicity to the bone marrow with a marked diminution of the well-differentiated myeloid cells associated with normal levels of immature myeloid precursor cells [9]. Since only in vitro models have been developed to examine the dose-dependent inhibition of granulopoiesis induced by beta-lactam antibiotics, it was decided to evaluate such potential adverse reactions in an in vivo model using neutropenic mice being treated with various antibiotics.

Compared with a slide blood culture system, a lysis centrifugation system detected significantly more positive blood cultures and more episodes of bacteremia in immunocompromised patients (even when on antibiotics), while giving results more rapidly and even at significantly lower CFUs. However, it had a high contamination rate and did not detect Pseudomonas aeruginosa as often. Use of the two systems together is recommended for diagnosing bacteremia early in immunocompromised patients.