BACKGROUND The health and economic burden from liver disease in the United States is substantial and rising. The objective of this study was to characterize temporal trends in mortality from chronic liver disease and liver cancer and the incidence of associated risk factors using population-based data over the past 30 years. METHODS Population-based mortality data were obtained from the National Vital Statistics System, and population estimates were derived from the national census for US adults (aged >45 years). Crude death rates (CDRs), age-adjusted death rates (ADRs), and average annual percentage change (AAPC) statistics were calculated. RESULTS In total, 690,414 deaths (1.1%) were attributable to chronic liver disease, whereas 331,393 deaths (0.5%) were attributable to liver cancer between 1981 and 2010. The incidence of liver cancer was estimated at 7.1 cases per 100,000 population. Mortality rates from chronic liver disease and liver cancer increased substantially over the past 3 decades, with ADRs of 23.7 and 16.6 per 100,000 population in 2010, respectively. The AAPC from 2006 to 2010 demonstrated an increased ADR for chronic liver disease (AAPC, 1.5%; 95% confidence interval, 0.3%–2.8%) and liver cancer (AAPC, 2.6%; 95% confidence interval, 2.4%–2.7%). CONCLUSIONS A comprehensive approach that involves primary and secondary prevention, increased access to treatment, and more funding for liver-related research is needed to address the high death rates associated with chronic liver disease and liver cancer in the United States.

We report the first documented isolation of Wohlfahrtiimonas chitiniclastica from a human in the United States. Initially misidentified as Acinetobacter lwoffii by Vitek-2, the isolate was subsequently identified as W. chitiniclastica by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. While the clinical significance of the isolate in this case is unclear, it highlights the superior performance of MALDI-TOF MS for bacterial identification. CASE REPORTA 26-year-old morbidly obese male courier worker was admitted with worsening right leg swelling and draining ulcers. He had developed lymphedema of the right leg during the preceding year after undergoing surgical correction of a right lower extremity varus deformity. A few weeks prior to the current admission, he had noticed right leg ulcers draining yellowish green serosanguineous fluid. On admission, he was afebrile and his white blood cell count was 11,100/l. He was found to have right lower extremity cellulitis.A swab was collected from the right leg and sent to the microbiology laboratory for wound cultures. The sample was inoculated onto blood, chocolate, and MacConkey agars and incubated under aerobic conditions at 37°C. Gram staining revealed many Gram-negative bacilli and moderate Gram-positive cocci. Four different organisms were isolated from the swab after growth. Microbial identification of each isolate was performed by using routine biochemical tests, including automated identification by the Vitek 2 system (bioMérieux, Marcy l'Etoile, France). The organisms were identified as Proteus vulgaris, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter lwoffii, and Staphylococcus aureus. The isolates were subsequently analyzed in triplicate by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) (RUO version 3.1, Bruker Biotyper; Bruker Daltonics, Bremen, Germany). Of note, the isolate identified as A. lwoffii by the Vitek 2 system was identified by MALDI-TOF MS as Wohlfahrtiimonas chitiniclastica, with identification log (score) values of 2.253, 2.296, and 2.229. Log (score)

Background Daratumumab (DARA) is a human IgG1 kappa monoclonal antibody that targets cells expressing CD38, which is highly expressed in multiple myeloma (MM) cells. In the phase 2 MMY2002 (Sirius) trial, treatment with single agent DARA resulted in a 29% overall response rate, with a median PFS of 3.7 months in heavily pretreated MM patients (Lonial S. J Clin Oncol. 2015; 33(suppl): abstrLBA8512). However, CD38 is also expressed on red blood cells (RBCs) and DARA binding to RBCs results in pan-reactivity on RBC panel testing using an indirect antiglobulin test (IAT). Recently, it was reported that treating RBCs with dithiothreitol (DTT) removes DARA to allow for accurate antibody testing (Chapuy CI, et al. Transfusion. 2015;55(6pt2):1545-1554) but also denatures Kell antigen in the process. To date, little is known about the impact of DARA interference with IAT on the outcomes of patients requiring packed RBC (PRBC) transfusions. Methods The frequencies of PRBC transfusions and any transfusion-related adverse events from all 124 patients treated on the Sirius study were obtained from the clinical database as of the data cut off of January 9th, 2015. Although details of transfusions were not prospectively collected, surrogate outcomes of transfusion reactions within 4 weeks of the transfusion were analyzed including change in hemoglobin (Hb), elevated bilirubin, fever, and hypotension. In addition, we evaluated IAT results and transfusion outcomes of the 8 patients treated at our institution. Results During the study, 47 patients received 147 transfusions with a total of 235 units of PRBCs. To date, no transfusion-related reactions were noted. Of the 47 patients, 8 patients were treated at our institution. One patient showed multiple alloantibodies (anti-E, -K, -Jkb, -Fya, -Fy3, -S, Knops) on IAT prior to DARA. This individual and 6 others agglutinated all RBCs on panel testing with weak reactivity at the antihuman globulin phase of testing. Reactivity was enhanced by gel testing compared to reactivity in low ionic strength saline and was unaffected by enzymatic treatment with ficin. Six out of 7 patients had a negative autocontrol. The one patient with a positive autocontrol had a weakly positive direct antiglobulin test with IgG. Six out of these 7 patients with panagglutinin had a positive result on the first IAT after initiation of DARA, ranging from 7 to 175 days (median 49). One patient did not have an IAT after initiation of DARA. A total of 9 leuko-reduced, irradiated, phenotypically matched RBCs were given to 3 patients during DARA treatment, and additional 9 units were given to 3 patients after DARA completion while their IATs remained positive. All transfusions resulted in an appropriate rise in Hb (median 1.0 g/dL, range 0.5-2.7) without any associated transfusion reactions. None of the patients made new unexpected RBC alloantibodies while receiving phenotypically matched RBCs. Conclusion For the 7 patients at our site with IAT testing after DARA treatment, all demonstrated pan-reactivity on RBC panel testing. Treatment with DTT removes this interference but also denatures Kell antigen in the process. Most hospitals do not use DTT as part of routine immunohematology workups; therefore, we recommend obtaining a red cell phenotype prior to initiating DARA treatment and providing phenotypically matched blood thereafter to avoid resultant difficulties in new alloantibody identification and delays in providing compatible PRBCs. Based on a database query of all 124 patients as well as all patients at our site, PRBC transfusions did not appear to be associated with complications. In a MM patient population that will frequently require PRBC transfusion, blood bank and hematologist/oncologist awareness of these findings is important to minimize errors or delays in providing compatible PRBCs. Disclosures Chari: Novartis: Consultancy, Research Funding; Millennium/Takeda: Consultancy, Research Funding; Celgene: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Research Funding; Onyx: Consultancy, Research Funding; Biotest: Other: Institutional Research Funding; Array Biopharma: Consultancy, Other: Institutional Research Funding, Research Funding. Jagannath:Celgene: Honoraria; BMS: Honoraria; MERCK: Honoraria; Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation: Honoraria; Janssen: Honoraria. Catamero:Celgene: Honoraria, Other: Lecturer; Onyx: Other: Lecturer; Millennium/Takeda: Other: Lecturer. Verina:Celgene: Other: Lecturer. Doshi:Janssen: Employment. Feng:Janssen: Employment. Uhlar:Janssen: Employment. Khan:Janssen: Employment. Ahmadi:Janssen: Employment. Voorhees:Millennium/Takeda and Novartis: Honoraria; Array Biopharma, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Celgene, GlaxoSmithKline, and Oncopeptides: Consultancy; Celgene, GlxoSmithKline, and Oncopeptides: Research Funding.