Browsing by Author "Zečević, Željko (36019685900)"

Objectives: The human cytomegalovirus is a notorious pathogen in the pediatric transplant setting. Although studies on factors in complicity with cytomegalovirus infection abound, the roles of age, sex, allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant modality, and type of underlying disease (malignant vs nonmalignant) with regard to cytomegalovirus infection and viral load in children are seldom explored. Our aim was to examine the significance of these factors on cytomegalovirus infection and viral load in Serbian pediatric recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant. Materials and Methods: Thirty-two pediatric recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant to treat various malignant and nonmalignant disorders were prospectively monitored for cytomegalovirus infection. The real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used for pathogen detection and quantitation. Demographic and virologic parameters were statistically analyzed with SPSS statistics software (version 20). Results: Cytomegalovirus DNA was detected in 23 patients (71.9%). Infection occurred significantly more often (P = .015) in patients with haploidentical donors. The opposite was noted for matched sibling grafts (P = .006). Viral load was higher in female patients (P = .041) and children with malignant diseases (P = .019). There was no significant relationship between viral infection or load and medical complications. Conclusions: Transplant recipients presented with a high incidence of cytomegalovirus viremia. The modality of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant was associated with the frequency of cytomegalovirus infection. Age, sex, type of underlying disease, and medically relevant events were not conducive to occurrences of viremia. Notably, we observed substantial viral loads in female patients and patients with neoplastic diseases. Studies comprising larger populations are needed to better understand these results. © Başkent University 2021 Printed in Turkey. All Rights Reserved.

Introduction: ABO blood type changes after ABOincompatible hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Most non-hematopoietic tissues retain the expression of the patient s own ABO antigens, which may adsorb from the plasma onto the donor s red blood cells (RBCs). Because of this phenomenon, a persistent patient s A and/or B antigen could be detected in the laboratory, despite 100% white cell donor chimerism. Adsorption of the patient s soluble ABO antigens on the newly formed RBCs complicates the interpretation of the patient s blood type and decision of transfusion therapy. Case Presentation: The first case report is a 6-year-old girl, A, D+, with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), transplanted with HLAmatched unrelated group O, D+ bone marrow. A second case report describes an 8-year-old girl, AB, D-, with ALL transplanted with an HLA-matched related group B, D+ bone marrow. The presence of persistent antigen A was registered in both patients more than 1 year after HSCT, despite complete donor chimerism. Conclusion: The weak expression of ABO antigens on RBCs after HSCT should be examined in detail for proper planning of transfusion therapies. © 2024 The Author(s).