The Effect of Glucose Levels Prior to Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation on Post-Transplant Complications and Health Resource Utilization

Abnormal blood glucose (BG) levels during hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) are associated with increased infections, delayed engraftment, and prolonged hospitalization, though little is known about these associations. We retrospectively evaluated mean BG levels in the week prior to HCT and subsequent outcomes for 852 HCTs at our hospital from 1/2009 – 12/2013 pertaining to 745 patients. Outcomes included infections (pneumonia, C. difficile, positive cultures, administration of antimicrobials, or neutropenic fever), time-to-engraftment (TTE), and quality indicators (30- and 90-day readmission rates [RR] and median length-of-stay [LOS]). We retrospectively evaluated mean BG levels in the week prior to HCT and subsequent outcomes for 852 HCTs at our hospital from 1/2009 – 12/2013 pertaining to 745 patients. Outcomes included infections (pneumonia, C. difficile, positive cultures, administration of antimicrobials, or neutropenic fever), time-to-engraftment (TTE), and quality indicators (30- and 90-day readmission rates [RR] and median length-of-stay [LOS]). Pre-HCT BG trends may be a prognostic biomarker for adverse outcomes, and thus can help improve quality of care for HCT patients.