NUTRITION AND ACUTE-LEUKEMIA IN ADULTS - RELATION BETWEEN NUTRITIONAL-STATUS AND INFECTIOUS COMPLICATIONS DURING REMISSION

BACKGROUND. The purpose of this study was to determine whether nutriti onal state was related to infectious complications in adult patients w ith acute leukemia. METHODS. During first-remission induction therapy (mean, 71 days), the duration of neutropenia, various infections, and fevers were related to changes in body weight and serum albumin concen trations as well as total parenteral nutrition (TPN) in 52 patients re ceiving standardized anti-infectious treatment. RESULTS, Severe neutro penia prevailed for 27% and fever for 28% of the induction period. A m ean weight loss of 5.1 kg, corresponding to a reduction of body mass i ndex from 23.5 to 21.7, was correlated with the number of days that pa tients had fever (P = 0.026). Despite a normal serum albumin value at the time of admission, patients had severe hypoalbuminemia (<25 g/L) d uring 16% of the induction period. The drop in serum albumin was indep endently related to the weight loss (r = 0.37, P = 0.03). Moreover, th e incidence and duration of hypoalbuminemia were significantly correla ted with duration of fever (P < 0.0001), diarrhea (P = 0.03), and TPN administration (P = 0.00002). CONCLUSIONS, Weight loss and severe hypo albuminemia were common during remission induction for these adult pat ients with acute leukemia and were closely related to the patients' in fections. (C) 1998 American Cancer Society.