Abstract
Although the environment serves as a reservoir for a variety of microorganisms, it is rarely implicated in disease transmission. However, exposure to environmental opportunistic pathogens (e.g., Aspergillus spp. and Legionella spp.) or airborne pathogens (e.g., Mycobacterium tuberculosis and varicella-zoster virus) may result in infections with significant morbidity and/or mortality in hematopoietic stem cell transplantations (HSCTs). In HSCTs, cyclosporine or tacrolimus (FK506) is administered in combination with other immunosuppressive agents (e.g., methotrexate or corticosteroids) to prevent and treat graft vs host disease (GVHD). Although cyclosporine is effective in preventing GVHD, its use entails greater hazards for infectious complications. Although survival rates for certain autologous recipients have improved, infection remains a leading cause of death among allogeneic transplants and is a major cause of morbidity among autologous HSCTs. Therefore, adherence to established standards (e.g. hand washing, proper ventilation for specialized care areas, and proper use of disinfectants) should be taken and can result in better patient outcomes in HSCTs. In this article, infection control strategies have been addresssed, especially for the environment.
