Length of stay and mortality associated with febrile neutropenia among children with cancer

Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate risk factors for longer length of stay (los) and mortality among hospitalized children with cancer who have febrile neutropenia. Methods This study involved analysis of longitudinal data from the University HealthSystem Consortium database from 1995 to 2002. All patients who were 21 years or younger, with diagnostic codes for both neoplastic disease and febrile neutropenia at discharge, were included. Results A total of 12,446 patients were identified for the study. The los was 5 days or less for 6,799 patients, and greater than 5 days for 5,647 patients. The mortality rate was 3%. On bivariate analysis, race, age, cancer type, and associated complications (bacteremia/sepsis, hypotension, pneumonia, and fungal infections) were significantly associated with longer length of stay and death. On multivariate analysis, age group, race, cancer type (acute myeloid leukemia, multiple cancers v acute lymphoblastic leukemia), and the complication variables were significantly associated with increased risk of longer los and death. Certain types of cancer (Hodgkin's disease, osteosarcoma/Ewing's sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, compared with acute lymphoblastic leukemia) and year of discharge after 1995 were significantly associated with a reduced risk of longer length of stay and/or mortality. Conclusion Race, age group, year of discharge, associated complications, and cancer type were significantly associated with risk of longer los and mortality. These factors may potentially help in identifying high-risk patients who might benefit from targeted antibiotic therapy or prophylactic hematopoietic growth factor support.