Tag: infection
Reducing Hospital-Acquired Infections Among the Neurologically Critically Ill
Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) result in excess morbidity, mortality, and resource consumption. Immobilized, ventilator-dependent ICU patients are at the highest risk of HAI. Despite broad implementation of relevant... read more
You Can Get Sick From Germs on Hospital Floors
When you enter the hospital, probably the last thing that you’re thinking about is the floors. However, an emerging body of research suggests that hospital floors are covered with bacteria and could serve as a potential... read more
Clinical Performance of Beta-D-Glucan for the Diagnosis of Pneumocystis Pneumonia in Cancer Patients Tested with PCP PCR
Patients negative by both Beta-D glucan (BDG) and PCR were unlikely to have Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP). In patients with a compatible clinical syndrome for PCP, higher BDG values (>200 pg/mL) were consistently associated... read more
Tigecycline in Critically Ill Patients on Continuous RRT
Despite high dialysability, dialysis clearance displayed only a minor contribution to tigecycline elimination, being in the range of renal elimination in patients without AKI. No dose adjustment of tigecycline seems necessary... read more
Decontaminants Don’t Cut Bloodstream Infection Risk in Ventilated ICU Patients
The use of digestive and oral decontaminants in patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) who are mechanically ventilated and who have moderate to high antibiotic resistance is not associated with a reduction in ICU-acquired... read more
New Sickle Cell Test Can Transform Screening
Sickle cell disease is common throughout much of sub-Saharan Africa. It affects up to 3% of births in some areas and is associated with very high mortality. Many cases go undiagnosed in regions where there are few resources,... read more
Vitamin Treatment For Sepsis Is Put To The Test
Dr. Jonathan Sevransky was intrigued when he heard that a well-known physician in Virginia had reported remarkable results from a simple treatment for sepsis. Could the leading cause of death in hospitals really be treated... read more
Antimicrobial Chemical Tied to Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Dust
Most people have heard about antibiotic-resistant germs. But how about antibiotic-resistant dust? A new Northwestern University study has found that an antimicrobial chemical called triclosan is abundant in dust — and linked... read more
Antimicrobial copper touch surfaces may help fight global threat of antibiotic resistance
Copper is a powerful antimicrobial with rapid, broad-spectrum efficacy against bacteria and viruses, and has been shown to kill disease-causing pathogens, including influenza A, E.coli and norovirus, and resistant bacteria... read more
Bacteria ‘alarm clock’ may cause repeat infections in patients
Scientists have discovered a bacteria 'alarm clock' that wakes dormant Salmonella in the body, allowing the bug to trigger a repeat infection. The researchers, from Imperial College London, say the 'alarm clock' is shared... read more
Do State Regulations on Nurse Staffing Make a Difference in ICU Outcomes?
In the recent issue of Critical Care Medicine, Law and colleagues published an evaluation of the impact of changes in Massachusetts state regulations mandating that nurse staffing levels on critical care units be set at 1:1... read more
Electronic Health Records & Preventing Healthcare-Associated Infection
The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH), as part of the American Reinvestment & Recovery Act of 2009, was created to accelerate the pace of technology diffusion in the American healthcare... read more
PET-CT in Critically Ill Patients: Diagnosing the Unsuspected
PET-CT precisely detected the deep foci of infection about 48 hours prior to the diagnosis of sepsis. The cases reports suggested the use of this image technique in ICU for patients with sepsis of unknown origin. We admitted... read more
Abdominal Sepsis: A Multidisciplinary Approach
Recently released, Abdominal Sepsis examines in detail the topic of sepsis, with a focus on intra-abdominal sepsis. Particular attention is devoted to source control in the management of the infection, antimicrobial therapy... read more
Patterns of Early Crystalloid Resuscitation Provided to Sepsis and Septic Shock Patients
Patterns and Outcomes Associated With Timeliness of Initial Crystalloid Resuscitation in a Prospective Sepsis and Septic Shock Cohort. Crystalloid was initiated significantly later with comorbid heart failure and renal failure,... read more
PPIs do not increase risk for C. difficile infection in ICU
Proton pump inhibitors are not associated with an increased risk for Clostridium difficile infection in ICU patients, according to the results of a retrospective cohort study. PPI use was not associated with a significant... read more
Imaging platform captures hard-to-track bacterial lung infections in real time
Ahsan Akram and colleagues have created a fluorescent imaging probe that can quickly and accurately detect hard-to-trace Gram-negative bacteria (one of the major bacterial groups) in human lungs within minutes. Their first-in-human... read more
Proton-Pump Inhibitor Prophylaxis in the ICU
Critical illness can disrupt local and systemic mechanisms that protect against upper gastrointestinal bleeding, a condition that may be associated with increased mortality, particularly among patients receiving extracorporeal... read more
Decontamination Strategies and Bloodstream Infections With Antibiotic-Resistant Microorganisms in Ventilated Patients
In this cluster randomized multicenter study in 13 European ICUs, decontamination strategies with either antibiotics (SDD or SOD) or CHX mouthwash were not associated with reductions in ICU-acquired BSI with MDRGNB, nor mortality,... read more
Decontamination of Oral or Digestive Tract for Patients in the ICU
The study by Wittekamp and colleagues in this issue of JAMA evaluating strategies for decontamination of mechanically ventilated patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) fills an important gap in the evidence regarding these... read more
An Incurable Disease Is On The Rise In California, And Scientists Say Climate Change Could Cause It To Spread To Much Of The Western US
A fungus that thrives in dry soil and warm weather has caused a record number of infections in California. Experts fear climate change will cause it to spread across the western US. Valley fever, a fungal disease that infects... read more
Last Year, The Flu Put Him In A Coma. This Year He’s Getting The Shot
Charlie Hinderliter wasn't opposed to the flu shot. He didn't have a problem with vaccinations. He was one of about 53 percent of Americans who just don't get one. An estimated 80,000 Americans died of the flu, or flu-related... read more
