Once weekly fluconazole for antifungal prophylaxis post-liver transplantation

Invasive fungal infections (IFI) remain a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) recipients. In this retrospective study, the outcomes of a protocol using once weekly fluconazole for 3 months after OLT in low- and high-risk patients were reviewed.

In total, 221 OLTs were evaluated in the 3-year period after institution of the new protocol to determine the incidence of IFI within 6 months post-OLT.

In this cohort, 11 IFIs developed during the 6-month post-transplant period, with the majority being non-albicans Candida. High-risk patients had a greater rate of IFI (16.7% versus 3.4%, P = 0.038) and a significantly longer intensive unit care (ICU) and hospital lengths of stay compared with low-risk patients. Patient and graft survival were similar between the groups. Our patient population appeared to be at low risk for IFI, with 92% of the entire cohort considered low risk.

Given the low incidence of IFI in the low-risk group and the possibility of such protocol selecting out for fluconazole-resistant fungi, the use of weekly fluconazole for 3 months may not be justifiable in low-risk OLT recipients. Given the increased resource utilization observed with IFI, further examination of a more intensive prophylactic strategy in high-risk patients may be warranted.