Viral kinetics and outcomes of adenovirus viremia following allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation.

BACKGROUND

Adenovirus (AdV) is a serious infection following hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT). Little is known about AdV viral kinetics and optimal threshold for initiation of pre-emptive therapy.

METHODS

Single-center retrospective study of 16 consecutive adult HCT recipients with detectable AdV identified over a 5-year period.

RESULTS

Median time to AdV reactivation after HCT was 176 days (IQR 86-408). Nine patients received cidofovir, although 14/16 had no tissue-invasive disease. Among treated patients, median duration of viremia was shorter when initiating treatment at viral loads < 10,000 copies/ml (28 vs. 52 days). All-cause mortality in this cohort was 44%. All six patients (five of which were untreated) with peak viral loads < 10,000 copies/ml survived; whereas only 30% (3/10) of patients with peak viral loads greater than this threshold survived, despite most (n = 8; 80%) of them receiving cidofovir (P = .01). Three-month survival following diagnosis of AdV viremia was significantly lower with peak viremia > 10,000 copies/ml (100 vs. 17%; P = .005).

CONCLUSION

AdV is associated with high all-cause mortality, especially for viremia > 10,000 copies/ml. Delaying therapy until viremia reaches AdV levels ≥10,000 copies/ml was associated with more protracted infection and poor outcomes. Larger studies are needed.