Infections of febrile neutropenic patients in malignant hematological diseases (second study period)

Sixty-one febrile episodes among 27 neutropenic patients with malignant hematological diseases were studied during a study period between 1998 and 2001. The results were compared with the previous 3-year period. The main differences in treatment were that we did not use ciprofloxacin prophylaxis routinely and we added granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor to the antimicrobial treatment regimen. The clinical and microbiological spectra of diseases shifted toward Gram-positive bacteremia and lower respiratory infections. The number and rate of infections and the mortality rate did not change significantly.