Nutritional risk factors predict severe acute graft‐versus‐host disease and early mortality in pediatric allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Abstract Background Malnutrition is a pro‐inflammatory state, yet data on nutritional risk factors and development of acute graft‐versus‐host disease (aGVHD) are extremely limited. Procedure We conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of pediatric patients up to age 21 years who underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia from January 2011 to September 2014 to determine whether malnutrition was associated with development of aGVHD and early mortality. We identified body mass index (BMI) percentile and serum albumin levels as potential markers of malnutrition and defined two composite nutritional risk variables as any of the following: albumin < 2.8 g/dl, weight loss ≥10% from baseline, and low BMI [<25th (NUT25) or <5th percentile (NUT5)]. Nutritional markers and GVHD grade were assessed at baseline, 30, 60, and 90 days post‐HSCT, and patients were censored upon development of GVHD. Results BMI <25th or <5th percentile, NUT25, and NUT5 at the beginning of any 30‐day period predicted a three‐ to fourfold risk of developing of severe (grade III–IV) aGVHD in the subsequent 30 days in models adjusted for age, sex, donor source, and degree of human leukocyte antigen matching. Mortality at day 100 was low, but NUT25 risk at baseline conferred an increased risk of death (7.9% vs. 1%, P = 0.035). Conclusions Malnutrition is a targetable risk factor in pediatric HSCT; prospective trials are needed to investigate this relationship further and identify effective nutritional interventions.