The transplant cohort of the German center for infection research (DZIF Tx-Cohort): study design and baseline characteristics.

Ganser A

Collaborators: Lehmann A, Ganser A, Lange B, Maecker-Kolhoff B, Tönshoff B, Morath C, Rieger C, Falk C, Schmaderer C, Pohle D, Sturm E, Jäckel E, Kohlmayer F, Anton G, Krause G, Wichmann HE, Mix H, Vehreschild JJ, Bucher J, Hädicke-Jarboui J, Weiss KH, Wagner K, Pape L, Frey L, Renders L, Verbeek M, Schiffer M, Zirngibl M, Kreusser MM, Neuenhahn M, Geßner M, Lang P, Nadalin S, Meuer S, Giese T, Iftner T, Illig T, Ganzenmüller T, Welte T, Bethge W.
Author information:
(1)Institute of Epidemiology and Social Medicine, University of Münster, Münster, Germany. [Email]
(2)German Center for Infection Research, Hannover-Braunschweig Site, Brunswick, Germany. [Email]
(3)Department of Nephrology, Klinikum rechts der Isar of the Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany.
(4)German Center for Infection Research, Munich Site, Munich, Germany.
(5)German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Munich, Germany.
(6)Institute of Medical Informatics, Statistics and Epidemiology, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany.
(7)German Center for Infection Research, Hannover-Braunschweig Site, Brunswick, Germany.
(8)Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Endocrinology, Hannover Medical School
(MHH), Hannover, Germany.
(9)German Center for Infection Research, Heidelberg Site, Heidelberg, Germany.
(10)Nierenzentrum Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
(11)Department of General, Visceral and Transplantation Surgery, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
(12)German Center for Infection Research, Tübingen Site, Tübingen, Germany.
(13)University Hospital for General, Visceral and Transplant Surgery, Tübingen, Germany.
(14)Epidemiology, Helmholtz Center for Infection Research Braunschweig, Brunswick, Germany.
(15)Institute for Medical Epidemiology, Biometry and Informatics, Medical Faculty, Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany.
(16)Institute for Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Hygiene
(MIH), Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
(17)Institute of Virology, Hannover Medical School
(MHH), Hannover, Germany.
(#)Contributed equally

https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10654-020-00715-3

Infectious complications are the major cause of morbidity and mortality after solid organ and stem cell transplantation. To better understand host and environmental factors associated with an increased risk of infection as well as the effect of infections on function and survival of transplanted organs, we established the DZIF Transplant Cohort, a multicentre prospective cohort study within the organizational structure of the German Center for Infection Research. At time of transplantation, heart-, kidney-, lung-, liver-, pancreas- and hematopoetic stem cell- transplanted patients are enrolled into the study. Follow-up visits are scheduled at 3, 6, 9, 12 months after transplantation, and annually thereafter; extracurricular visits are conducted in case of infectious complications. Comprehensive standard operating procedures, web-based data collection and monitoring tools as well as a state of the art biobanking concept for blood, purified PBMCs, urine, and faeces samples ensure high quality of data and biosample collection. By collecting detailed information on immunosuppressive medication, infectious complications, type of infectious agent and therapy, as well as by providing corresponding biosamples, the cohort will establish the foundation for a broad spectrum of studies in the field of infectious diseases and transplant medicine. By January 2020, baseline data and biosamples of about 1400 patients have been collected. We plan to recruit 3500 patients by 2023, and continue follow-up visits and the documentation of infectious events at least until 2025. Information about the DZIF Transplant Cohort is available at https://www.dzif.de/en/working-group/transplant-cohort .