مرکز منطقه ای اطلاع رساني علوم و فناوري - An evaluation of immunization practices and their knowledge about this issue in splenectomized patients

Abstract :

Objectives: The spleen is an organ functional in both humoral and cellular immunity. Therefore, the spleen plays a major role in host defense against infections. In this study, we evaluated the immunization histories of splenectomized patients and their level of information on this subject. Patients and Methods: A total of 51 patients who applied to Clinics of Infectious Diseases, Hematology and General Surgery from our hospital and from others and who had undergone splenectomy between March 2010 and October 2013 were enrolled. Results: A total of 26 (50.9%) patients were women and 25 (49.1%) were men with a mean age 53.3 years (age range, 21-83 years). The most common reason for splenectomy was idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (n= 23, 45%), followed by tumor metastasis (n=8, 15.6%) and autoimmune hemolytic anemia (n=7, 13.7%). Pneumococcal vaccination was done in 64% (n=32) of the patients before the operation, in 23% (n=12) after the operation while 13% (n=7) of the patients were not vaccinated. None of the seven patients from other hospitals were informed about vaccination by their doctors while information only about pneumococcal vaccination was given to the other seven patients, but there were errors in their vaccination procedures. Conclusion: Immunization of patients undergoing splenectomy is frequently a forgotten and regarded as an unimportant topic. Usage of variable pneumococcal vaccination programs without giving any information to patients supports the view that both patients and clinicians have inadequate levels of information about vaccinations and shows the need for prompt multidisciplinary medical attention for adult patients.