RESUMO
Cryptococcosis is the third most common cause of invasive fungal infection in solid organ transplant recipients and cryptococcal meningitis (CM) its main clinical presentation. CM outcomes, as well as its clinical features and radiological characteristics, have not yet been considered on a large scale in the context of kidney transplantation (KT). We performed a nationwide retrospective study of adult patients diagnosed with cryptococcosis after KT between 2002 and 2020 across 30 clinical centers in France. We sought to describe overall and graft survival based on whether KT patients with cryptococcosis developed CM or not. Clinical indicators of CNS involvement and brain radiological characteristics were assessed. Eighty-eight cases of cryptococcosis were diagnosed during the study period, with 61 (69.3%) cases of CM. Mortality was high (32.8%) at 12 months (M12) but not significantly different whether or not patients presented with CM. Baseline hyponatremia and at least one neurological symptom were independently associated with CM (p < 0.001). Positive serum cryptococcal antigen at diagnosis was also significantly associated with CM (p < 0.001). On magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), three patterns of brain injury were identified: parenchymal, meningeal, and vascular lesions. Although CM does not affect graft function directly, it entails a grim prognosis.
RESUMO
INTRODUCTION: Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a herpesvirus linked to pre-malignant lymphoproliferative diseases and up to nine distinct human tumors. The most frequent EBV-associated malignancies are lymphomas and nasopharyngeal carcinoma. By promoting smooth muscle proliferation, EBV can induce EBV-associated smooth muscle tumors (SMT) which remain a very rare oncological entity. This study reports one case report of SMT and aims to offer the largest review of literature on post-transplantation-SMT (PT-SMT) in kidney transplant recipients, with a focus on therapeutic management and evolution of graft function. METHODS: Case reports and case series of PT-SMT in kidney transplant recipients were collected from 1996 to 2019. RESULTS: A total of 59 PT-SMT were evaluated. The median time at diagnosis was 74.6 months after kidney transplantation. The most frequent localizations were liver and lung. EBV seroconversion was notified in all six patients with previously negative status. Preferred therapeutic option was surgery (65.9%), associated with a reduction in immunosuppression (77.2%), which includes switch to mTOR inhibitors (29.5%), and discontinuation of MMF (32%). In our review, 13% of patients experienced rejection, 8.7% lost their graft and went back on hemodialysis; 8.8% of patients died of PT-SMT. CONCLUSION: PT-SMT is a rare but serious condition in kidney transplant recipients. EBV seroconversion following transplantation appears as a risk factor in developing PT-SMT in solid-organ recipients. In the absence of guidelines, therapeutic management for PT-SMT is challenging and exposes the patient to high risk of graft loss.
