Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41654550›Full record

ArticleNature communications2026

Combined bacteriophage and antibiotic therapy for refractory peritoneal dialysis-related peritonitis caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae.

Xiaoxiao Yang, Nannan Wu, Xiaotian Jiang, Mengjun Cheng, Lijuan Hu, Na Li, Yi Fang, Xiaofang Yu, Jun Ji, Xiaoqiang Ding and 1 more

Abstract readCase Reports
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Phage and endolysin-based inhibition ofFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2026
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Xiaoxiao YangDepartment of Nephrology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.ORCID 0000-0001-5828-7970
Nannan WuCreatiPhage Biotechnology, Co. Ltd, Shanghai, China.ORCID 0000-0003-1244-0030
Xiaotian JiangDepartment of Nephrology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Mengjun ChengCreatiPhage Biotechnology, Co. Ltd, Shanghai, China.
Lijuan HuDepartment of Infectious Diseases, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Na LiDepartment of Infectious Diseases, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Yi FangDepartment of Nephrology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.ORCID 0000-0001-8675-4513
Xiaofang YuDepartment of Nephrology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Jun JiDepartment of Nephrology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. ji.jun@zs-hospital.sh.cn.
Xiaoqiang DingDepartment of Nephrology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. ding.xiaoqiang@zs-hospital.sh.cn.
Xialian XuDepartment of Nephrology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. xu.xialian@zs-hospital.sh.cn.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Phage therapy is emerging as a promising alternative to antibiotics for treating various infections. However, there have been no prior studies on using bacteriophages for peritonitis in patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis. This report presents the successful treatment of refractory peritonitis in a 71-year-old male peritoneal dialysis patient using bacteriophages combined with antibiotics. The patient has a history of refractory and repeat peritonitis caused by Staphylococcus haemolyticus, which was resolved through simultaneous catheter replacement (SCR). Subsequently, the patient experiences another episode of refractory peritonitis due to Klebsiella pneumoniae. Although this strain is found to be susceptible to amikacin and imipenem, a 14-day course of treatment with these antibiotics in the abdominal cavity fails to resolve the peritonitis. Combined with antibiotic therapy, the patient is successfully treated with intraperitoneal phage therapy targeting his bacterial isolate. We monitor the longitudinal progression of phage loads, phage-neutralizing antibodies, interleukin-6 levels, and lipopolysaccharide concentrations in the dialysate effluent during the bacteriophage therapy. The combination of a phage cocktail and imipenem (IPM) demonstrates a greater effect in killing bacteria than either treatment alone, which indicates that a synergistic effect exists between the phage cocktail and IPM. Intraperitoneal IPM is discontinued after a 3-week course of treatment. At the same time, oral fluconazole is given to prevent fungal infections. The patient is discharged without any antibiotics. After this round of treatment, the patient remains healthy during the one-month follow-up. Our study suggests that personalized phage therapy combined with sensitive antibiotics can play a significant role in managing refractory peritonitis in patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis, showing promise for future applications.

Indexed as

Anti-Bacterial AgentsBacteriophagesKlebsiella InfectionsKlebsiella pneumoniaePeritoneal DialysisPeritonitisPhage TherapyAgedCombined Modality TherapyHumansImipenemMaleAnti-Bacterial AgentsImipenem

Identifiers

PMID41654550
PMCPMC12992791

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.