Project description:BackgroundPredictors of ICU-acquired pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) are not well-established in critically ill patients with ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), making IPA commonly misdiagnosed and anti-fungal therapy delayed. We aimed to develop a clinical score for prediction of IPA among patients with VAP.MethodsMechanically ventilated patients who developed VAP in 4 ICUs in Bretagne, Western France, were included. The score was constructed in a learning cohort, based on predictors of IPA in logistic regression model, and validated in a validation cohort.ResultsAmong 1636 mechanically ventilated patients, 215 developed VAP but only 39 developed IPA (4 possible and 35 probable/putative) (18%). Most cases (31/39) were documented through a positive broncho-alveolar sample culture. Independent predictors of IPA were immunodepression (including onco-hematological disorder, immunomodulatory treatment, solid organ transplant, neutropenia < 0.5G/L and high-dose steroids ≥ 1 mg/kg/day of prednisolone equivalent) (p = 0.001; score = 1 point) and lymphocyte count at admission < 0.8 G/L (p = 0.019; score = 1 point). Operational values of the predictive score in the learning/validation cohort were 50%/52% sensitivity and 90%/87% specificity, respectively, for high PiPa score (score = 2) and 94%/91% sensitivity and 44%/46% specificity, respectively, for moderate PiPa score (score = 1). Finally, the AUC for the prediction of IPA was 0.783 in the learning cohort and 0.770 in the validation cohort.ConclusionsWe evaluated a clinical score with good predictive value which may help to predict IPA in patient with VAP. External validation will be needed to confirm our preliminary findings.
Project description: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.
Project description:BackgroundData on incidence of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and invasive pulmonary aspergillosis in patients with severe SARS-CoV-2 infection are limited.MethodsWe conducted a monocenter retrospective study comparing the incidence of VAP and invasive aspergillosis between patients with COVID-19-related acute respiratory distress syndrome (C-ARDS) and those with non-SARS-CoV-2 viral ARDS (NC-ARDS).ResultsWe assessed 90 C-ARDS and 82 NC-ARDS patients, who were mechanically ventilated for more than 48 h. At ICU admission, there were significantly fewer bacterial coinfections documented in C-ARDS than in NC-ARDS: 14 (16%) vs 38 (48%), p < 0.01. Conversely, significantly more patients developed at least one VAP episode in C-ARDS as compared with NC-ARDS: 58 (64%) vs. 36 (44%), p = 0.007. The probability of VAP was significantly higher in C-ARDS after adjusting on death and ventilator weaning [sub-hazard ratio = 1.72 (1.14-2.52), p < 0.01]. The incidence of multi-drug-resistant bacteria (MDR)-related VAP was significantly higher in C-ARDS than in NC-ARDS: 21 (23%) vs. 9 (11%), p = 0.03. Carbapenem was more used in C-ARDS than in NC-ARDS: 48 (53%), vs 21 (26%), p < 0.01. According to AspICU algorithm, there were fewer cases of putative aspergillosis in C-ARDS than in NC-ARDS [2 (2%) vs. 12 (15%), p = 0.003], but there was no difference in Aspergillus colonization.ConclusionsIn our experience, we evidenced a higher incidence of VAP and MDR-VAP in C-ARDS than in NC-ARDS and a lower risk for invasive aspergillosis in the former group.
Project description:Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis is growing in incidence, as patients at risk are growing in diversity. Outside the classical context of neutropenia, new risk factors are emerging or newly identified, such as new anticancer drugs, viral pneumonias and hepatic dysfunctions. Clinical signs remain unspecific in these populations and the diagnostic work-up has considerably expanded. Computed tomography is key to assess the pulmonary lesions of aspergillosis, whose various features must be acknowledged. Positron-emission tomography can bring additional information for diagnosis and follow-up. The mycological argument for diagnosis is rarely fully conclusive, as biopsy from a sterile site is challenging in most clinical contexts. In patients with a risk and suggestive radiological findings, probable invasive aspergillosis is diagnosed through blood and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid samples by detecting galactomannan or DNA, or by direct microscopy and culture for the latter. Diagnosis is considered possible with mold infection in lack of mycological criterion. Nevertheless, the therapeutic decision should not be hindered by these research-oriented categories, that have been completed by better adapted ones in specific settings. Survival has been improved over the past decades with the development of relevant antifungals, including lipid formulations of amphotericin B and new azoles. New antifungals, including first-in-class molecules, are awaited.
Project description:We hypothesized that invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) may generate a distinctive proteomic signature in plasma and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL). Proteins in plasma and BAL from two neutropenic rabbit models of IPA and Pseudomonas pneumonia were analyzed by SELDI-TOF MS. Hierarchical clustering analysis of plasma time course spectra demonstrated two clusters of peaks that were differentially regulated between IPA and Pseudomonas pneumonia (57 and 34 peaks, respectively, p<0.001). PCA of plasma proteins demonstrated a time-dependent separation of the two infections. A random forest analysis that ranked the top 30 spectral points distinguished between late Aspergillus and Pseudomonas pneumonias with 100% sensitivity and specificity. Based on spectral data analysis, three proteins were identified using SDS-PAGE and LC/MS and quantified using reverse phase arrays. Differences in the temporal sequence of plasma haptoglobin (p<0.001), apolipoprotein A1 (p<0.001) and transthyretin (p<0.038) were observed between IPA and Pseudomonas pneumonia, as was C-reactive protein (p<0.001). In summary, proteomic analysis of plasma and BAL proteins of experimental Aspergillus and Pseudomonas pneumonias demonstrates unique protein profiles with principal components and spectral regions that are shared in early infection and diverge at later stages of infection. Haptoglobin, apolipoprotein A1, transthyretin, and C-reactive protein are differentially expressed in these infections suggesting important contributions to host defense against IPA.
Project description:To assess whether transcriptional differences exist in the epithelial tissue and the inflammatory infiltrate of invasive Aspergillus tracheobronchitis in patients with severe influenza or severe COVID-19, we performed GeoMx spatial transcriptomics on four biopsy samples in total: two of patients with influenza-associated pulmonary aspergillosis (IAPA) and two of patients with COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA). Several regions of interest (ROIs) were delineated in each biopsy sample, and transcriptomic data was derived of each of these ROIs using GeoMx with a whole transcriptome atlas with SARS-CoV-2 spike-in.
Project description:BackgroundDifferentiating Ventilator-Associated Tracheobronchitis (VAT) from Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) may be challenging for clinicians, yet their management currently differs. In this study, we evaluated the accuracy of the Clinical Pulmonary Infection Score (CPIS) to differentiate VAT and VAP.MethodsWe performed a retrospective analysis based on the data from 2 independent prospective cohorts. Patients of the TAVeM database with a diagnosis of VAT (n = 320) or VAP (n = 369) were included in the derivation cohort. Patients admitted to the Intensive Care Centre of Lille University Hospital between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2017 who had a diagnosis of VAT (n = 70) or VAP (n = 139) were included in the validation cohort. The accuracy of the CPIS to differentiate VAT from VAP was assessed within the 2 cohorts by calculating sensitivity and specificity values, establishing the ROC curves and choosing the best threshold according to the Youden index.ResultsThe areas under ROC curves of CPIS to differentiate VAT from VAP were calculated at 0.76 (95% CI [0.72-0.79]) in the derivation cohort and 0.67 (95% CI [0.6-0.75]) in the validation cohort. A CPIS value ≥ 7 was associated with the highest Youden index in both cohorts. With this cut-off, sensitivity and specificity were respectively found at 0.51 and 0.88 in the derivation cohort, and at 0.45 and 0.89 in the validation cohort.ConclusionsA CPIS value ≥ 7 reproducibly allowed to differentiate VAT from VAP with high specificity and PPV and moderate sensitivity and NPV in our derivation and validation cohorts.
Project description:Ventilator-associated pneumonia occurs in patients who have been intubated for at least 2–3 days with significant exposure to hospital-acquired organisms. Treatment should be initiated rapidly and cover Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA). Within 72 h or with the availability of culture results, antibiotics should be narrowed. Active research is on-going to identify patients at risk for ventilator-associated complications and to minimize the likelihood of infection in these patients.