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Table 3 Clinical characteristics, management and outcome among 297 patients with positive PCR for Pneumocystis jirovecii

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

Symptoms at baseline, n (%)

 Dyspnea

219 (73.7)

 Fever

214 (72.1)

 Cough

169 (56.9)

 Two symptoms

221 (74.4)

 Three symptoms

92 (31.0)

Objective baseline findings and biochemistry, median (q1-q3)

 Oxygen saturation, % (n = 285)a

89 (85–93)

 Hemoglobin, g/dl (n = 289)

10.7 (9.7–11.7)

 Leukocyte count, × 109/L (n = 287)

7.2 (4.3–10.1)

 Neutrophil count, × 109/L (n = 224)

5.0 (3.0–7.7)

 Lymphocyte count, ×  109/L (n = 152)b

0.6 (0.4–1.1)

 Albumin, g/L (n = 207)

32 (26–36)

 Lactate dehydrogenase, U/L (n = 165)

293 (224–390)

Radiological findings, n (%)

 Remarks on chest X-ray (n = 254)

205 (80.7)

  Nodular, linear and/or patchy opacities

219 (86.2)

  Focal infiltrates

30 (11.8)

  Consolidations

11 (4.33)

 Remarks on thoracic CT (n = 247)

242 (98.0)

  Ground glass opacities

188 (76.1)

  Thickening of interstitial septa

69 (27.9)

  Infiltrates

53 (21.5)

  Consolidations

44 (17.8)

  Lymphadenopathy

41 (16.6)

  Bronchiectasis

18 (7.3)

  Three-in-bud sign

16 (6.5)

  Cysts

12 (4.9)

Management and complications, n (%)

 Receiving PCP-directed treatment

261 (87.9)

 Antimicrobials for other pathogensc

176 (59.3)

 Transferred to an ICU

88 (29.6)

 Receiving ventilation support

88 (29.6)

  Invasive and/or invasive and non-invasive

50 (16.8)

  Non-invasive only

38 (12.8)

 Developing complications

121 (40.7)

  Respiratory failure/ARDS

83 (27.9)

  Superinfection

50 (16.8)

  Hemodynamic failure

37 (12.5)

  Renal failure

33 (11.1)

  Pneumothorax

7 (2.4)

Outcome, n (%)

 In-hospital mortality

64 (21.5)

 Cumulative all-cause mortality

  30-days

60 (20.2)

  90-days

97 (32.7)

  180-days

116 (39.1)

  1. Abbreviations: ARDS acute respiratory distress syndrome, CT computed tomography, ICU intensive care unit, PCP Pneumocystis pneumonia, PCR polymerase chain reaction
  2. a68 patients received supplemental oxygen when oxygen saturation was measured
  3. bLymphopenia (< 1.0 lymphocytes × 109/L) was present among 108 patients (71.1%) with retrievable lymphocyte counts
  4. c163 patients received antibiotics, 56 patients received antifungals, 25 patients received antivirals other than anti-retrovirals and four patients received anti-tuberculous drugs