A Placebo-Controlled Trial of Antibiotics for Smaller Skin Abscesses

A Placebo-Controlled Trial of Antibiotics for Smaller Skin Abscesses

Uncomplicated skin abscesses are common, yet the appropriate management of the condition in the era of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is unclear. As compared with incision and drainage... read more

WHO Resolution: Recognizing Sepsis as a Global Health Priority

WHO Resolution: Recognizing Sepsis as a Global Health Priority

The true burden of disease arising from sepsis remains unknown. The current estimates of 30 million episodes and 6 million deaths per year come from a systematic review that extrapolated from published national or local population... read more

Airway glucose homeostasis: a new target in the prevention and treatment of pulmonary infection

Airway glucose homeostasis: a new target in the prevention and treatment of pulmonary infection

In health, the glucose concentration of airway surface liquid (ASL) is 0.4mM, around 12 times lower than blood glucose concentration. Airway glucose homeostasis is a set of processes that actively maintain low ASL glucose... read more

COPD can increase risk of developing sepsis

COPD can increase risk of developing sepsis

People with COPD have a higher than average risk of developing lung infections, such as pneumonia, which then puts them at higher risk for developing sepsis. Sepsis and septic shock can result from an infection anywhere in... read more

WHO tries to keep certain antibiotics largely off the table

In a bid to battle antibiotic resistance, the World Health Organization for the first time has classified antibiotics into three categories, including one that lists the drugs it hopes will not be used except in circumstances... read more

Diagnosis, Prevention, and Treatment of C. difficile: Current State of the Evidence

Diagnosis, Prevention, and Treatment of C. difficile: Current State of the Evidence

This is a summary of a systematic review that evaluated the recent evidence regarding the accuracy of diagnostic tests and the effectiveness of interventions for preventing and treating Clostridium difficile (C. difficile)... read more

ER Overcrowding Delays Sepsis Treatment

ER Overcrowding Delays Sepsis Treatment

Prompt antibiotic initiation is associated with improved mortality in sepsis and septic shock. However, new research shows that patients with sepsis, a life-threatening complication of an infection, had delays approaching... read more

WHA Adopts Resolution on Sepsis

World Health Assembly and the World Health Organization made sepsis a global health priority, by adopting a resolution to improve, prevent, diagnose, and manage sepsis. This marks a quantum leap in the global fight against... read more

Addressing Sepsis – Video Recap of the WHA Side Event on Sepsis

Addressing Sepsis – Video Recap of the WHA Side Event on Sepsis

On the occasion of the World Health Assembly passing a resolution on sepsis, the Global Sepsis Alliance, IAPO, and the German Federal Ministry of Health have hosted the "WHA Side Event on Sepsis" in Geneva on May... read more

Empirical MRSA Coverage for Nonpurulent Cellulitis

Empirical MRSA Coverage for Nonpurulent Cellulitis

Cellulitis is an infection of the deep dermis and subcutaneous tissue, manifesting as expanding erythema, edema, and warmth of the skin. In most instances of cellulitis, the causative microorganism cannot be definitively... read more

Facilitators and Barriers of Hand Hygiene

Facilitators and Barriers of Hand Hygiene

What keeps ICU nurses from washing their hands? And why do some overcome the barriers? Although there are many papers on hand hygiene, this new one in American Journal of Infection Control caught my eye. In this study 3,260... read more

Diagnostic Value of Procalcitonin on Early Postoperative Infection After Pediatric Cardiac Surgery

Diagnostic Value of Procalcitonin on Early Postoperative Infection After Pediatric Cardiac Surgery

Procalcitonin was more accurate than C-reactive protein and WBC to predict early postoperative infection, but the diagnostic properties of procalcitonin could not be observed during the first 3 postoperative days due to the... read more

How informatics can help your hospital prevent infections

How informatics can help your hospital prevent infections

Hospitalists have a powerful tool to help them fight outbreaks of Clostridium difficile and other infectious agents: electronic health record data. Sara Murray, MD, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of... read more

Infection Prevention and Healthcare Associated Infections

Infection Prevention and Healthcare Associated Infections

It is difficult to overstate the importance of healthcare associated infections (HAI). Approximately 4% of patients who enter hospitals in the United States develop an infection related to their hospital care. Although... read more

CDC and Prevention Guideline for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infection

CDC and Prevention Guideline for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infection

This guideline is intended to provide new and updated evidence-based recommendations for the prevention of SSI and should be incorporated into comprehensive surgical quality improvement programs to improve patient safety.... read more

Toolkit To Improve Safety in Ambulatory Surgery Centers

Toolkit To Improve Safety in Ambulatory Surgery Centers

The Toolkit To Improve Safety in Ambulatory Surgery Centers helps ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) make care safer for their patients. ASCs can use the toolkit to apply the proven principles and methods of AHRQ's Comprehensive... read more

Visual Aids for Infectious Disease Diagnoses

Learning the hallmarks of proper diagnosis requires using all of our senses: hearing, to listen to a patient’s symptoms; touch, to probe an infection site; and occasionally smell, to qualitatively determine infection characteristics... read more