Donor immunization with pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and early protective antibody responses following allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation

Patients undergoing hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) are at increased risk for infections with Streptococcus pneumoniae and have long-lasting, impaired antibody responses to pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccines. We examined whether donor immunization with a heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) would elicit protective antibody responses to additional doses of vaccine administered early after transplantation. Ninety-six patients scheduled to receive an allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant were randomized with their donors to receive either a dose of PCV7 vaccine or no vaccine before transplantation. All patients received PCV7 at 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months following transplantation, and serotype-specific antibody concentrations were determined after each dose. Following HCT, geometric mean antibody concentrations of patients in the immunized donor group were significantly higher for 5 of the 7 vaccine serotypes after one dose (P \u3c.05) and for 4 of the 7 serotypes after 2 doses of vaccine (P \u3c.03). Sixty-seven percent of patients in the immunized donor group had presumed protective IgG concentrations more than or equal to 0.50 microg/mL to all 7 serotypes following the first dose of vaccine compared to 36% in the unimmunized donor group (P =.05). After the third dose of vaccine, both groups had more than 60% of patients with concentrations at least 0.50 microg/mL to all vaccine serotypes. Donor immunization enhances early antibody responses of patients undergoing HCT to pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. A 3-dose schedule of PCV7 vaccine at 3, 6, and 12 months is immunogenic in these patients regardless of donor immunization

Analysis of Outcomes Following Failed Endovascular Treatment of Chronic Limb Ischemia

Despite recent studies highlighting the advantages of endoluminal intervention in the management of chronic limb ischemia (CLI), outcomes following failed peripheral angioplasty remain less well described. We present a retrospective analysis of failed transluminal infrainguinal percutaneous arterial angioplasty with or without stenting (PTA/S) in patients with CLI. A database of patients undergoing infrainguinal PTA/S between 2002 and 2005 was maintained. Patients underwent duplex scanning follow-up at 2 weeks, 3 months, and every 6 months after the intervention. Angiograms were reviewed in all cases to assess lesion characteristics. Results were standardized to current Transatlantic Inter-Society Consensus (TASC) criteria. Kaplan-Meier survival analyses were performed to assess time-dependent outcomes. In total, our analysis involved 246 patients who underwent treatment for CLI using PTA/S. Eighteen percent of procedures ( n = 46) were considered an intervention failure secondary to restenosis by duplex ultrasound, returning clinical symptoms, a nonhealing foot lesion, or the absence of a prior palpable pulse. Indications for the original procedure in patients whose PTA/S failed were tissue loss in 44%, claudication in 44%, and rest pain in 12%, while TASC lesion grades were A (0%), B (18%), C (18%), and D (64%). Of patients failing PTA/S, 4% failed in the first 30 days, 78% failed between 1 and 18 months, while 18% failed following 18 months, with a mean time to failure of 8.7 months. Also, 82% of PTA/S failures were candidates for a second endovascular procedure, 11% were suitable for only traditional open bypass, and 4% demonstrated progression of disease necessitating amputation. Of patients undergoing a second endovascular procedure, limb salvage rates were 86% at 12-month follow-up and there was a single periprocedural mortality and complication rate of 6.6%. Of patients requiring open surgical bypass after failed PTA/S, 20% ( n = 1) required a major amputation and there were no mortalities. Failure of endoluminal therapy for treatment of lower extremity arterial occlusive disease is amenable to subsequent endovascular intervention for limb salvage with limited morbidity and mortality

Carotid angioplasty and stent-induced bradycardia and hypotension: Impact of prophylactic atropine administration and prior carotid endarterectomy

ObjectiveWe compared the physiologic effect of selective atropine administration for bradycardia with routine prophylactic administration, before balloon inflation, during carotid angioplasty and stenting (CAS). We also compared the incidence of procedural bradycardia and hypotension for CAS in patients with primary stenosis vs those with prior ipsilateral carotid endarterectomy (CEA).MethodsA total of 86 patients were treated with CAS at 3 institutions. Complete periprocedural information was available for 75 of these patients. The median degree of stenosis was 90% (range, 60%-99%). Indications for CAS were severe comorbidities (n = 49), prior CEA (n = 21), and prior neck radiation (n = 5). Twenty patients with primary lesions were treated selectively with atropine only if symptomatic bradycardia occurred (nonprophylactic group). Thirty-four patients with primary lesions received routine prophylactic atropine administration before balloon inflation or stent deployment (prophylactic group). The 21 patients with prior CEA received selective atropine treatment only if symptomatic bradycardia occurred (prior CEA group) and were analyzed separately. Mean age and cardiac comorbidities did not vary significantly either between the prophylactic and nonprophylactic atropine groups or between the primary and prior CEA patient groups. Outcome measures included bradycardia (decrease in heart rate >50% or absolute heart rate <40 bpm), hypotension (systolic blood pressure <90 mm Hg or mean blood pressure <50 mm Hg), requirement for vasopressors, and cardiac morbidity (myocardial infarction or congestive heart failure).ResultsThe overall incidence of hypotension and bradycardia in patients treated with CAS was 25 (33%) of 75. A decreased incidence of intraoperative bradycardia (9% vs 50%; P < .001) and perioperative cardiac morbidity (0% vs 15%; P< .05) was observed in patients with primary stenosis who received prophylactic atropine as compared with patients who did not receive prophylactic atropine. CAS after prior CEA was associated with a significantly lower incidence of perioperative bradycardia (10% vs 33%; P < .05), hypotension (5% vs 32%; P < .05), and vasopressor requirement (5% vs 30%; P < .05), with a trend toward a lower incidence of cardiac morbidity (0% vs 6%; not significant) as compared with patients treated with CAS for primary carotid lesions. There were no significant predictive demographic factors for bradycardia and hypotension after CAS.ConclusionsThe administration of prophylactic atropine before balloon inflation during CAS decreases the incidence of intraoperative bradycardia and cardiac morbidity in primary CAS patients. Periprocedural bradycardia, hypotension, and the need for vasopressors occur more frequently with primary CAS than with redo CAS procedures. On the basis of our data, we recommend that prophylactic atropine administration be considered in patients with primary carotid lesions undergoing CAS