Post-Transplant and In-Hospital Risk Factors for ARDS After Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

BACKGROUND: ARDS is a serious complication of hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT). Pre-transplant risk factors for developing ARDS after HSCT have been recently identified. The objective of this study was to better understand post-transplant risk factors for developing ARDS after HSCT.

METHODS: This was a nested case-control study. ARDS cases were matched to hospitalized non-ARDS controls by age, type of transplantation (allogeneic vs autologous), and time from transplantation. In a conditional logistic regression model, any potential risk factors were adjusted a priori for risk factors known to be associated with ARDS development.

RESULTS: One hundred and seventy ARDS cases were matched 1:1 to non-ARDS hospitalized controls. Pre-admission, cases were more likely to be on steroids (odds ratio [OR] 1.90 [1.13–3.19], P = .02). At time of admission, cases had lower platelet count (OR 0.95 [0.91–0.99], P = .02), lower bicarbonate (OR 0.94 [0.88–0.99], P = .035), and higher creatinine (OR 1.91 [1.23–2.94], P = .004). During the first 24 h after admission, cases were more likely to have received transfusion (OR 2.41 [1.48–3.94], P < .001), opioids (OR 2.94 [1.67–5.18], P < .001), and have greater fluid administration (OR 1.52 [1.30–1.78], P < .001). During the hospitalization, ARDS cases had higher temperature (OR 1.77 [1.34–2.33], P < .001) and higher breathing frequency (OR 1.52 [1.33–1.74], P < .001). ARDS cases were more likely to have had sepsis (OR 68.0 [15.2–301.7], P < .001), bloodstream infection (OR 4.59 [2.46–8.57], P < .001), and pneumonia (OR 9.76 [5.01–19.00], P < .001).

CONCLUSIONS: Several post-transplant predictors of ARDS development specific to the HSCT population were identified in the pre-hospital and early in-hospital domains. These findings can provide insights into causal mechanisms of ARDS development and be used to develop HSCT-specific risk prediction models.