Nosocomial infection in patients underwent orthotopic liver transplantation / 解放军医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate morbidity and analyze high risk factors of nosocomial infection in patients who underwent orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) in our ICU, in order to draft possible preventive strategies. Methods The clinical data of 56 OLT patients from Apr 2002 to Dec 2004 were analyzed. Results Significantly high APACHE Ⅱ scores and total plasma bilirubin, low platelet count were found in patients with nosocomial infection. The number of patients who had received an additional operation and broad-spectrum antibiotics before OLT were greater in nosocomial infection (NI) group than in none-nosocomial infection (NNI) group. Notably, the longer the broad-spectrum antibiotics used before OLT, the higher the morbidity rate of nosocomial infection. No significant difference was found in age, Child-Pugh grade and plasma albumin level between the two groups. In addition, APACHE Ⅱ scores and total bilirubin level were significantly higher in patients acquired enterococcal infection than in those infected with other pathogenic microorganisms. Conclusions High APACHE Ⅱ score, high total bilirubin level, low platelet count and length of use of broad-spectrum antibiotics before OLT were closely associated with nosocomial infection. As an important indicator, change in total bilirubin level not only represented the liver function ,but also was one of the high risk factors to nosocomial infection in patients undergoing OLT.