Adenovirus Infections in Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Recipients

We report a 12% incidence of adenovirus infections among 532 recipients of hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) from January 1986 through March 1997. The median time from day of stem cell infusion to first positive culture was 41 days. Recipients of allogeneic stem cells, as opposed to autologous stem cell recipients, were more likely to have a culture positive for adenovirus (16% vs. 3%; P<.0001). Pediatric patients were also more likely than adults to have a positive culture (23% vs. 9%; P<.0001). Among stem cell recipients with partially matched related donors, pediatric recipients appear to be at significantly greater risk for infection than adult recipients (P<.001). Positive cultures were associated with evidence of invasion in 64% of cases (41 of 64). A multiple logistic regression analysis showed that isolating adenovirus from more than 1 site correlated with greater risk for invasive infections (P = .002). Invasive infections were associated with poorer chance of survival.