Adherence to practice guidelines for the management of febrile neutropenia in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: An observational study in a referral center in Iran.

INTRODUCTION: Patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) are suspected to develop febrile neutropenia (FN) and severe infections. Therefore, appropriate prescription of antibiotics in these patients is crucial to reduce the rates of morbidity, mortality, and antimicrobial resistance. The present study aimed to evaluate the physicians' prescription and adherence to the FN clinical guidelines among patients undergoing HSCT. METHODS: This prospective observational single-center study was conducted during a 15-month period in a tertiary referral hospital in Iran. The patients with at least one episode of FN following HSCT were included in the current study. The physicians' adherence to the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) clinical guidelines for the management of FN was evaluated using prescription data and medical record reviews. RESULTS: Two hundred and fifteen patients with 297 FN episodes were evaluated. The timing of antibiotics and the selection of the initial regimen were considered guideline-based therapy. However, antibiotic dosing and initial regimen modification were not followed in terms of the guideline recommendations in 58.1% of the patients. In particular, vancomycin was inappropriately given in 83.1% of patients. The overall adherence of physicians to the guidelines was 35.8%. CONCLUSION: Non-adherence to clinical guidelines is high particularly in initial regimen modification and administration of vancomycin, which affects hospital stay and patient's outcome. Implementation of guideline-review sessions to raise the awareness of the physicians and to improve the rational use of antimicrobial agents may be crucial.

High-dose Intravenous Vitamin C in Early Stages of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Infection: A Double-blind, Randomized, Controlled Clinical Trial.

Objective: Based on previous studies in the sepsis population, Vitamin C could prevent injuries when administered in high doses and before the damage is established. This study aimed to evaluate the protective potentials of high-dose Vitamin C in the progression of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Methods: A double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial was conducted. Patients with moderate-to-severe disease severity based on the World Health Organization definition were enrolled and received 12 g/d Vitamin C (high-dose intravenous Vitamin C [HDIVC]) or placebo for 4 days. Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score as a primary outcome, National Early Warning Score, Ordinal Scale of Clinical Improvement, and cytokine storm biomarkers were recorded on days 0, 3, and 5. Survival was also assessed on day 28 after enrollment. Findings: Seventy-four patients (37 patients in each group) were enrolled from April 5, 2020, to November 19, 2020, and all patients completed follow-up. A lower increase in SOFA score during the first 3 days of treatment (+0.026 vs. +0.204) and a higher decrease in this parameter in the last 2 days (-0.462 vs. -0.036) were observed in the treatment group. However, these differences did not reach a significance level (P = 0.57 and 0.12, respectively). Other indices of clinical and biological improvement, length of hospitalization, and intensive care unit admission days were the same between the two groups. Treatment did not affect the 28-day mortality. Conclusion: Among patients with moderate-to-severe disease of COVID-19, the use of HDIVC plus standard care resulted in no significant difference in SOFA score or 28-day mortality compared to the standard care alone.