| Literature DB >> 30024557 |
Neval Ete Wareham1, Caspar Da Cunha-Bang, Álvaro H Borges, Christina Ekenberg, Jan Gerstoft, Finn Gustafsson, Ditte Hansen, Carsten Heilmann, Marie Helleberg, Jens Hillingsø, Paul Suno Krohn, Isabelle Paula Lodding, Thomas Kromann Lund, Louise Lundgren, Amanda Mocroft, Michael Perch, Søren Lykke Petersen, Irma Petruskevicius, Allan Rasmussen, Kasper Rossing, Andreas A Rostved, Henrik Sengeløv, Vibeke Rømming Sørensen, Søren Schwartz Sørensen, Jens D Lundgren.
Abstract
Correct classification of death causes is an important component of transplant trials.We aimed to develop and validate a system to classify causes of death in hematopoietic stem cell (HSCT) and solid organ (SOT) transplant recipients.Case record forms (CRF) of fatal cases were completed, including investigator-designated cause of death. Deaths occurring in 2010 to 2013 were used for derivation; and were validated by deaths occurring in 2013 to 2015. Underlying cause of death (referred to as recorded underlying cause) was determined through a central adjudication process involving 2 external reviewers, and subsequently compared with the Danish National Death Cause Registry.Three hundred eighty-eight recipients died 2010 to 2015 (196 [51%] SOT and 192 [49%] HSCT). The main recorded underlying causes of death among SOT and HSCT were classified as cancer (20%, 48%), graft rejection/failure/graft-versus-host-disease (35%, 28%), and infections (20%, 11%). Kappa between the investigator-designated and the recorded underlying cause of death was 0.74 (95% CI 0.69-0.80) in derivation and comparable in the validation cohort. Death causes were concordant with the Danish National Death Cause Registry in 37.2% (95% CI 31.5-42.9) and 38.4% (95% CI 28.8-48.0) in the derivation and validation cohorts, respectively.We developed and validated a method to systematically and reliably classify the underlying cause of death among transplant recipients. There was a high degree of discordance between this classification and that in the Danish National Death Cause Registry.Entities:
Mesh:
Year: 2018 PMID: 30024557 PMCID: PMC6086480 DOI: 10.1097/MD.0000000000011564
Source DB: PubMed Journal: Medicine (Baltimore) ISSN: 0025-7974 Impact factor: 1.889
Figure 1Assessment process of the CLASS project. Case record forms (CRF) were completed by trained investigators at the Central Coordinating Center. CRFs include clinical information around the time of death. Furthermore, the investigators proposed a cause of death (investigator-designated cause of death). The completed CRF's were then reviewed by 2 external reviewers who were blinded to each other and who each independently determined cause of death using the cause of death algorithm (Supplemental digital content 3). The 2 external reviewers consisted of 1 specialist within the transplant field and 1 within another field, including infectious disease specialists. Where the 2 reviewers agreed on the underlying cause of death (independent agreement), the case would be finalized and underlying cause of death recorded (recorded underlying cause of death). In case of disagreement, the underlying cause of death were resolved by an online adjudication process where the reviewers were able to see each other's recordings and correspond anonymously (Adjudicated agreement). Where the 2 external reviewers could not reach consensus on the underlying cause of death, the case would be discussed by 2 other randomly selected experts to determine the underlying cause of death.
Characteristics of patients at time of death in the derivation and validation cohorts.
Figure 2Proportion of agreement between the investigator-designated cause of death (proposed in CRF) and the recorded underlying cause of death (determined by the external reviewers after adjudication) according to transplant type. CRF = case record form.
Figure 3Agreement (% and Kappa) between investigator-designated cause of death (proposed in CRF) and the recorded underlying cause of death (determined by the external reviewers after adjudication) according to recorded underlying cause of death in derivation and validation cohort. CRF = case record form.
Odds and Kappa of agreement between the investigator-designated and the recorded underlying cause of death (determined by the external reviewers after adjudication or an expert panel) in derivation cohort, according to characteristics provided in the case record form.
Proportion and Kappa of agreement between the investigator-designated and the recorded underlying cause of death (determined by the external reviewers after adjudication or an expert panel), according to predictors of agreement identified in the logistic regression (derivation cohort and validation cohort).
Figure 4Agreement between recorded underlying cause of death (determined by the external reviewers after adjudication) in the CLASS project and the Danish National Death Cause Registry among those where this information was available (N = 376) according to recorded underlying cause of death in derivation and validation cohort.