Clinical microbiology and infection : the official publication of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
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Clin. Microbiol. Infect. · Dec 2012
Impact of a hand hygiene educational programme on hospital-acquired infections in medical wards.
Improvement in hand hygiene (HH) compliance has been associated with a decrease in the incidence of hospital-acquired infection (HAI) and hospital-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (HA-MRSA) infection/colonization. We aimed to evaluate the impact of a multimodal intervention in medical wards on HH compliance, alcohol-based hand rub (AHR) consumption and incidence of HAI and HA-MRSA. A before-after intervention study and an assessment 1 year later were conducted in three internal medicine wards. ⋯ HA-MRSA incidence density was 0.92 in the PRE period vs. 0.25/1000 hospital-days in the POST period (p 0.2) and 0.15/1000 hospital-days (p 0.1) 1 year later. A sustained increase in AHR consumption was followed by an improvement in HH compliance after a multimodal campaign. A trend for lower incidence density of new hospital-acquired MRSA was detected in the POST intervention and follow-up periods.
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Clin. Microbiol. Infect. · Nov 2012
Pulmonary complications of pneumococcal community-acquired pneumonia: incidence, predictors, and outcomes.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics, predictors and outcomes of pneumococcal pneumonia developing pulmonary complications and the distribution of pneumococcal serotypes. It was a prospective study including all adult patients admitted to the Hospital Clinic of Barcelona, Spain (2001-2009) with the diagnosis of pneumococcal pneumonia. Microbiological investigation was systematically performed, including antimicrobial susceptibility and serotype distribution (only invasive strains isolated during 2006-2009). ⋯ Resistance to antibiotics was lower in complicated cases. No significant differences were observed in the serotype distribution between complicated and uncomplicated pneumonia. In the multivariate analysis, COPD was a protective factor against pulmonary complications.
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Clin. Microbiol. Infect. · Nov 2012
MALDI-TOF MS Andromas strategy for the routine identification of bacteria, mycobacteria, yeasts, Aspergillus spp. and positive blood cultures.
All organisms usually isolated in our laboratory are now routinely identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) using the Andromas software. The aim of this study was to describe the use of this strategy in a routine clinical microbiology laboratory. The microorganisms identified included bacteria, mycobacteria, yeasts and Aspergillus spp. isolated on solid media or extracted directly from blood cultures. ⋯ For 96.3% and 92.2% of yeasts and Aspergillus spp., respectively, the identification was obtained with a single acquisition. After a second acquisition, the overall identification rate was 98.8% for yeasts (160/162) and 98.4% (63/64) for Aspergillus spp. In conclusion, the MALDI-TOF MS strategy used in this work allows a rapid and efficient identification of all microorganisms isolated routinely.
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Clin. Microbiol. Infect. · Oct 2012
ReviewProphylactic human papillomavirus vaccination and primary prevention of cervical cancer: issues and challenges.
Two prophylactic human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines have been recently approved: one quadrivalent and the other a bivalent vaccine. When administered in a three-dose course to HPV-naive individuals, both vaccines exhibited excellent safety profiles and were highly efficacious against targeted clinical endpoints in large-scale international phase III clinical trials. Where coverage has been high for the appropriate target population, a reduction of HPV-related diseases with the shortest incubation periods has already been seen. ⋯ Increasing coverage and improving completion of the HPV vaccine schedule, particularly of sexually naive females, is now the most important public-health issue in HPV vaccine efforts. A clear strategy for integrating primary (HPV vaccination) and secondary (screening) cervical cancer prevention must be agreed as soon as possible. Several second-generation prophylactic vaccines are being developed with the aim of resolving some of the limitations of the two current HPV prophylactic vaccines.
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Clin. Microbiol. Infect. · Oct 2012
ReviewCompliance with anti-H1N1 vaccine among healthcare workers and general population.
Population protection through vaccination against infectious diseases has been one of the major achievements of public health care. The recent H1N1 influenza virus pandemic reopened the discussion on the strategic arrangements for vaccination in the face of spreading infection. ⋯ Concern about vaccine safety and distrust of health authorities are the commonest reasons given for low compliance with vaccination by healthcare workers. Better communication strategies to improve vaccination acceptance by the general population and by healthcare workers are required.