Epidemiological and clinical characteristics of immunocompromised patients infected with Pneumocystis jirovecii in a twelve-year retrospective study from Norway

Table 1 Characterization of the study population; 297 patients with positive PCR for Pneumocystis jirovecii

Male sex, n (%)	180 (60.6)
Ever smoking, n (%)	162 (54.5)
Age (years), median, (q₁-q₃)	66 (59–74)
Immunosuppressive conditions, n (%)
*Hematological malignancies*	107 (36.0)
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma	55 (18.5)
Chronic leukemia	17 (5.7)
Plasma cell disease	15 (5.1)
Acute leukemia	11 (3.7)
Hodgkin’s lymphoma	9 (3.0)
*Solid tumors*	75 (25.3)
Lung including pleural membranes	27 (9.1)
Breast	14 (4.7)
Genitourinary tract	14 (4.7)
Gastrointestinal tract	9 (3.0)
Other primary tumor^a	11 (3.7)
*Immunological disorders*	46 (15.5)
Rheumatoid arthritis	16 (5.4)
Connective tissue disorders and vasculitidies	15 (5.1)
Miscellaneous^b disorders	15 (5.1)
*Solid organ transplantations*	37 (12.5)
Kidney	31 (10.4)
Heart, lung	6 (2.0)
*Chronic lung diseases*	18 (6.1)
Interstitial lung disease or sarcoidosis	11 (3.7)
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease	7 (2.4)
*HIV-infection*	7 (2.4)
*Other*^c	7 (2.4)
Comorbid conditions, n (%)
Hypertension	92 (31.0)
Cardiovascular disease	83 (27.9)
Chronic pulmonary disease	52 (17.5)
Diabetes mellitus type 1 or 2	44 (14.8)
Solid tumor	30 (10.1)
Chronic kidney disease	38 (12.8)
Congestive heart failure	18 (6.1)
Rheumatic disease	12 (4.0)
Hematological malignancy^d	13 (4.4)
Chronic liver disease	4 (1.4)
Charlson comorbidity index, n (%)
< 4	47 (15.8)
4–6	132 (44.4)
> 6	118 (39.7)

Abbreviations: AIHA autoimmune hemolytic anemia, ITP immune thrombocytopenic purpura, PCR polymerase chain reaction
^aOther primary tumors include brain tumors (i.e., astroglioma, meningioma), nasopharyngeal carcinoma, melanoma, adrenal gland tumor, sarcoma, and mesothelioma
^bMiscellaneous immunological disorders include hematological disorders (ITP, AIHA), skin disorders, uveitis, inflammatory diseases of gastrointestinal tract and arthritidies other than rheumatoid arthritis
^cOther immunosuppressive conditions include one patient with statin-induced myositis, one patient with common variable immunodeficiency and four patients with no established disorder at the time of presentation
^dIn 13 patients, hematological malignancy was not considered the primary immunosuppressive condition nor indication for immunosuppression but rather comorbidity

ISSN: 1471-2334