Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America
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There is a global crisis of antibiotic resistance in part because of the collateral damage of antibiotic use. Reduction in antibiotic consumption is clearly important to minimize this problem. Limiting treatment duration may be the most clinically palatable means of reducing antibiotic consumption. ⋯ However, in most clinical scenarios, the recommended duration of therapy in published guidelines is based on expert opinion. Biological markers, such as procalcitonin, have been shown to reduce antimicrobial consumption with no adverse outcome in 11 randomized controlled trials. Although procalcitonin may not be the perfect biomarker, the concept of procalcitonin-guided antibiotic discontinuation after clinical stabilization, in conjunction with antimicrobial stewardship programs, appears to be ready for introduction into clinical practice.
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Serum procalcitonin (PCT) levels rapidly increase in patients with invasive bacterial disease. PCT levels increase faster than do C-reactive protein levels. ⋯ In patients with community-acquired bacterial pneumonia, sequential PCT levels are useful as a guide to shorter courses of antimicrobial therapy. With use of emerging multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction platforms for the detection of viral and bacterial respiratory pathogens, it should be possible to critically assess whether an elevated serum PCT level is a valid biomarker of invasive bacterial infection.
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Increasingly, peripherally inserted central venous catheters (PICCs) are placed for prolonged intravenous access. Few data exist regarding risk factors for central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) complicating PICCs in hospitalized children, especially children hospitalized outside the intensive care unit (ICU). ⋯ Prolonged catheter dwell time, pediatric ICU exposure, and administration of parenteral nutrition as the indication for PICC insertion are important predictors of PICC-associated CLABSI in hospitalized children. A careful assessment of these risk factors may be important for future success in preventing CLABSIs in hospitalized children with PICCs.
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Early diagnosis and treatment of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) improves outcome. ⋯ A recently developed pan-Aspergillus PCR assay and GM testing of BAL fluid may facilitate the diagnosis of IPA after lung transplantation. A. fumigatus- and A. terreus-specific real-time PCR assays may be useful in rapidly identifying the most common cause of IPA and a species that is intrinsically resistant to amphotericin B, respectively.