Clinical conditions associated with PCP in children.
Pneumocystis jirovecii is a leading cause of opportunistic infections among the immune compromised. During the 1980s, attention focused on patients with HIV, however, with the advent of anti-retroviral therapy, we wished to revisit the question of underlying diseases associated with Pneumocystis pneumonia in children. We identified 80 cases from 1986 to 2006 and performed a retrospective chart review to identify clinical characteristics for each of the cases. HIV was the single most common associated underlying condition seen in this cohort, accounting for 39% of the cases overall, however, it was seen in just 15% of the cases since 1998. Transplant recipients and oncology patients together comprised another 39% of the cases, with 9% of cases attributed to primary immune deficiency and another 9% of cases associated with less well-recognized causes of susceptibility. This study documents the ongoing need for vigilance to diagnose Pneumocystis pneumonia in less well-recognized clinical scenarios.
Division of Allergy Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Rushani W
RW
Saltzman
Stephanie
S
Albin
Pierre
P
Russo
Kathleen E
KE
Sullivan
D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D007153:Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes / Q000150:complications*; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D009894:Opportunistic Infections / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology; D016377:Organ Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D045363:Pneumocystis carinii; D011020:Pneumonia, Pneumocystis / Q000209:etiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult