Tolerability of Aerosolized Versus Intravenous Pentamidine for Pneumocystis jirovecii Pneumonia Prophylaxis in Immunosuppressed Pediatric, Adolescent, and Young Adult Patients.

OBJECTIVES:Pentamidine is an antifungal that is used alternatively to sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim for the prophylaxis and treatment of Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP). The primary objective of this study was to assess the tolerability of aerosolized versus intravenous pentamidine for PJP prophylaxis in pediatric, adolescent, and young adult immunosuppressed patients. Secondary objectives included comparing pentamidine formulation reaction to dosing frequency and diagnosis. METHODS:This retrospective chart review used electronic medical record (EMR) data from patients at a tertiary care pediatric teaching institution from January 1, 2014, to January 1, 2017. Information used from the EMR included pentamidine dosing, ordering, and laboratory values. Inclusion criteria consisted of patients with a cancer diagnosis, hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients, and renal transplant recipients who received pentamidine for PJP prophylaxis. RESULTS:Ninety-six patients met inclusion criteria, of which 31 received aerosolized pentamidine. Ten of the 96 patients experienced a drug-related reaction to either aerosolized or intravenous pentamidine (p = 0.134). Nine of 10 patients who experienced a reaction received intravenous pentamidine versus 1 patient who received aerosolized pentamidine (p = 0.132). In those patients who reacted to pentamidine there was a higher incidence of reactions after subsequent administration (p = 0.039) and in patients with a blood cancer diagnosis (p = 0.042). CONCLUSIONS:Data suggest that patients who receive aerosolized pentamidine may tolerate therapy better compared to intravenous administration. Additional studies involving larger numbers of pediatric, adolescent, and young adult patients are needed for stronger statistically significant clinical differences in tolerability of aerosolized versus intravenous pentamidine.