title: Outbreaks of infectious diseases in stem cell transplant units: a silent cause of death for patients and transplant programmes.
abstract: Following the closure of the National Blood and Bone Marrow Transplant Unit in Dublin, because of an outbreak of vancomycin-resistant enterococcal infection, a survey was carried out by the EBMT to investigate the occurrence of outbreaks of infection in SCT units and the impact on patient morbidity, mortality and the administration of the transplant programme over a 10-year period from 1991 to 2001. A total of 13 centres reported 23 outbreaks of infection involving 231 patients: 10 bacterial, eight viral and five fungal outbreaks were reported and 56 deaths were attributed to infection. All fungal and bacterial deaths and the majority of viral deaths occurred in allograft recipients. In all outbreaks, the infection was reported to be hospital acquired and in all the viral, and half the bacterial infections, cross-infection was a major factor. All viral, four of 10 bacterial and three of five fungal outbreaks occurred in HEPA filtered rooms. A total of 12 SCT units reported a partial or total closure. The introduction of mandatory quality management systems such as JACIE should result in a change in attitude to 'incident reporting' and together with future surveys should reduce the incidence of infectious outbreaks in SCT units.
authors.affiliation: Department of Haematology, Durkan Leukaemia Research Laboratories, Trinity Centre, St James's Hospital, Dublin, Ireland. smccann@stjames.ie
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: McCann
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Byrne
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rovira
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Shaw
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ribaud
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sica
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Volin
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Olavarria
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mackinnon
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Trabasso
authors.forename: M T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: VanLint
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ljungman
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Browne
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gratwohl
authors.forename: A F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Widmer
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cordonnier
mesh_terms: D001228:Aspergillosis / Q000401:mortality; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation / Q000401:mortality*; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000401:mortality*; D003625:Data Collection; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013293:Enterococcus faecalis; D005374:Filtration; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000401:mortality; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007494:Ireland / Q000453:epidemiology; D018184:Paramyxoviridae Infections / Q000401:mortality; D011552:Pseudomonas Infections / Q000401:mortality; D018357:Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections / Q000401:mortality; D016868:Serratia Infections / Q000401:mortality; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires