Potential sites of infection that develop in febrile neutropenic patients

Three hundred episodes of neutropenia were reviewed for the occurrence of potential sites of infection. Ninety sites (30 per cent) were identified at the onset of fever independent of initial bacteraemia which was encountered in 104 episodes (35%) and predominantly involved Gram-positive cocci. A further 90 sites were recorded involving mainly the lower respiratory tract (58%) and skin and soft tissue (18%). These changes evolved significantly later (mean of 5.1 and 4.3 days respectively) than did other foci which mainly presented at the onset of fever (p < 0.01). However the infectious aetiology was established in only 54 cases overall with fungi being responsible for 25 of 45 cases of lower respiratory tract infections with a known microbiological aetiology. The mortality associated with initial bacteraemia, focus at onset and unexplained fever was 11-14% while that associated with the development of a subsequent focus was 28% with lung infiltrates carrying the worst prognosis. Therefore rather than being seen as a final solution for possible infectious complications, empiric therapy provides an opportunity for daily review of the patient thereby increasing the likelihood of both explaining initial fever and diagnosing subsequent infection.