Most patients are ready to leave the hospital within four to six weeks following transplant. The criteria to determine when you are ready to leave is based on four aspects of recovery: blood counts, nutrition, physical strength, and complications. Adequate medical supervision in your home setting is also very important.
Your platelet, white blood cell, and red blood cell counts must be high enough to prevent infection and bleeding problems. You must be able to eat enough calories so you do not to lose weight and you must be strong enough to care for yourself outside of the hospital environment. Your local physician must be familiar with the care of stem cell transplant patients after discharge and be available to evaluate you for early signs of infection or complications.
If you have traveled a long distance from home to come to UI Hospitals and Clinics for a stem cell transplant, you may be asked to stay in the Iowa City area for a few weeks following discharge from the hospital. This allows our medical team to insure the stability of your medical condition and/or to follow you closely for possible complications for which you are at high risk.
In some situations, you may receive intravenous nutrition, antibiotics or other medications in the home setting for a few days or weeks following discharge. Should this be necessary, your social worker, primary nurse, and patient coordinator will work with you in choosing a home care company to assist you.
Patients usually return to the Blood and Marrow Transplant clinic once or twice weekly for the first few weeks following discharge from the unit. During these visits you will have blood tests, physical exams, and your medications will be adjusted. Following each visit, your transplant physician will send a written report to your local physician. As time goes on, the frequency of follow-up visits decreases.
It takes a minimum of 12 months for the immune system to return to normal following a transplant. Immunosuppressive medications used to prevent or treat graft-vs-host disease, (prednisone, cyclosporine, and azothioprine) also increase the risk of infection. You and your family must be alert for signs of infection after returning home. A body temperature greater than 38 degrees centigrade or 100.5 degrees Fahrenheit always qualifies for a call to our Adult Blood and Marrow Transplant Unit at 319-356-3330. A transplant physician is on call at all times to answer questions and to see patients. |
