Who needs PCP prophylaxis?

Patients with less than 200 CD4+ T-cells/uL should receive PCP prophylaxis. Patients with constitutional symptoms such as thrush or unexplained fever greater than 100 F for greater than or equal to 2 weeks should also receive prophylaxis, regardless of their CD4+ T-cell count.

How can you prevent PCP?

The medicine most commonly used to prevent PCP is called trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (TMP/SMX), which is also known as co-trimoxazole and by several different brand names, including Bactrim, Septra, and Cotrim. Other medicines are available for people who cannot take TMP/SMX.

When is PCP prophylaxis indicated?

Some experts initiate PCP prophylaxis prior to transplantation, depending on the underlying disease and the pretransplant conditioning regimens or prior chemotherapy. Prophylaxis is recommended for longer than six months in patients who continue to receive immunosuppressive drugs (Tomblyn 2009).

What is CD4 count?

A CD4 count is a test that measures the number of CD4 cells in your blood. CD4 cells, also known as T cells, are white blood cells that fight infection and play an important role in your immune system.

Is Pneumocystis carinii primary or secondary immunodeficiency?

Pneumocystis carinii is an important opportun- istic pathogen in patients with poor T lym- phocyte function as a result of either primary or secondary immunodeficiency.

What is Oi prophylaxis?

Secondary prophylaxis (called maintenance therapy in the NIH/CDC guidelines) consists of therapy given to prevent relapse of known and appropriately treated OI that have occurred before effective antiretroviral therapy (ART).

What causes pneumocystis?

Pneumocystis pneumonia is caused by the yeast-like fungus Pneumocystis jirovecii that most commonly presents as an opportunistic infection in HIV infected patients, but may present in a variety of people with weak immune systems.

What is PJP prophylaxis?

Background. Pneumocystis jiroveci infection (PJP, also known as PCP) causes pneumonia in patients with immunosuppression due to underlying malignancy, organ transplantation or other conditions. The infection is best studied in those with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).

Is PCP a virus?

PCP (Virus Removal) PCP (also searched for as PCP virus, PCP version 1.07) is a shortened name for PC Privacy Dock; a Potentially Unwanted Program (PUP) that is known to download and install onto a computer system without user consent or by means of aggressive and unethical marketing techniques.

What is PCP diagnosis?

Diagnosis and Testing. PCP is diagnosed using a sample from a patient’s lungs. The sample is usually mucus that is either coughed up by the patient (called sputum ) or collected by a procedure called bronchoalveolar lavage. Sometimes, a small sample of lung tissue (a biopsy) is used to diagnose PCP.

What are the precautions for PCP pneumonia?

Standard Precautions Include: Hand hygiene Wearing appropriate PPE as needed How to handle patient equipment Injection safety practices Environmental cleaning Respiratory hygiene/coughing etiquette Handling of laundry Patient room placement

What is PCP AIDS?

HIV/AIDS News. Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) is a life-threatening lung infection that can affect people with weakened immune systems, such as those infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. More than three-quarters of all people with HIV disease will develop PCP if they do not receive treatment to prevent it.