Articles

Amplified fragment length polymorphism and whole genome sequencing: a comparison of methods in the investigation of a nosocomial outbreak with vancomycin resistant enterococci

Recognition of nosocomial outbreaks with antimicrobial resistant (AMR) pathogens and appropriate infection prevention measures are essential to limit the consequences of AMR pathogens to patients in hospitals....

Authors: Victoria A. Janes, Daan W. Notermans, Ingrid J.B. Spijkerman, Caroline E. Visser, Marja E. Jakobs, Robin van Houdt, Rob J.L. Willems, Menno D. de Jong, Constance Schultsz and Sébastien Matamoros

A recurrent and transesophageal echocardiography–associated outbreak of extended-spectrum β-lactamase–producing Enterobacter cloacae complex in cardiac surgery patients

We report a recurrent outbreak of postoperative infections with extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)–producing E. cloacae complex in cardiac surgery patients, describe the outbreak investigation and highlight the...

Authors: Tom Van Maerken, Els De Brabandere, Audrey Noël, Liselotte Coorevits, Pascal De Waegemaeker, Raina Ablorh, Stefaan Bouchez, Ingrid Herck, Harlinde Peperstraete, Pierre Bogaerts, Bruno Verhasselt, Youri Glupczynski, Jerina Boelens and Isabel Leroux-Roels

Antibiotic prescribing in general medical and surgical specialties: a prospective cohort study

Qualitative work has described the differences in prescribing practice across medical and surgical specialties. This study aimed to understand if specialty impacts quantitative measures of prescribing practice.

Authors: E. Charani, E. de Barra, T. M. Rawson, D. Gill, M. Gilchrist, N. R. Naylor and A. H. Holmes

Hospital outbreak caused by linezolid resistant Enterococcus faecium in Upper Austria

Enterococcus faecium is part of the human gastrointestinal flora but may act as opportunistic pathogen. Environmental persistence, high colonization capability and diverse intrinsic and acquired resistance mechan...

Authors: Heidrun Kerschner, Adriana Cabal, Rainer Hartl, Sigrid Machherndl-Spandl, Franz Allerberger, Werner Ruppitsch and Petra Apfalter

Abstracts from the 5th International Conference on Prevention & Infection Control (ICPIC 2019)

Authors:

Attitudes about sickness presenteeism in medical training: is there a hidden curriculum?

Sickness presenteeism among healthcare professionals can compromise patient safety. To better understand what motivates this phenomenon, especially among trainees, the authors investigated attitudes of medical...

Authors: Lauris C. Kaldjian, Laura A. Shinkunas, Heather Schacht Reisinger, Marc A. Polacco and Eli N. Perencevich

The rise in vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium in Germany: data from the German Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance (ARS)

Due to limited therapeutic options, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VREF) is of great clinical significance. Recently, rising proportions of vancomycin resistance in enterococcal infections have been r...

Authors: Robby Markwart, Niklas Willrich, Sebastian Haller, Ines Noll, Uwe Koppe, Guido Werner, Tim Eckmanns and Annicka Reuss

Dutch guideline for preventing nosocomial transmission of highly-resistant micro-organisms (HRMO) in long-term care facilities (LTCFs)

In 2012, the Dutch Working Party for Infection Control (WIP) issued the first Guideline for prevention of transmission of highly-resistant micro-organisms (HRMO) in Hospitals. The next step was to focus on lon...

Authors: Andrea Eikelenboom-Boskamp, Jobje Haaijman, Maria Bos, Katja Saris, Else Poot and Andreas Voss

Incidence of healthcare-associated infections in a tertiary hospital in Beijing, China: results from a real-time surveillance system

To quantify the five year incidence trend of all healthcare-associated infections (HAI) using a real-time HAI electronic surveillance system in a tertiary hospital in Beijing, China.

Authors: Yuzheng Zhang, Mingmei Du, Janice Mary Johnston, Ellie Bostwick Andres, Jijiang Suo, Hongwu Yao, Rui Huo, Yunxi Liu and Qiang Fu

Risk factors and outcomes in non-transplant patients with extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli bacteremia: a retrospective study from 2013 to 2016

Escherichia coli is one of the most common strains of extended-spectrum β-lactam (ESBL)-producing bacteria, and the prevention and treatment of ESBL-producing E. coli infections is an ongoing challenge. The clini...

Authors: Tingting Xiao, Kai Yang, Yanzi Zhou, Shuntian Zhang, Jinru Ji, Chaoqun Ying, Ping Shen and Yonghong Xiao

Antimicrobial susceptibility and molecular characteristics of Mycoplasma pneumoniae isolates across different regions of China

In China mainland, most Mycoplasma pneumoniae related studies are carried out in Beijing and Shanghai, while rare studies are performed in the other regions. In this study, we analyzed the molecular biology chara...

Authors: Fei Zhao, Jing Li, Jinrong Liu, Xuemei Guan, Jie Gong, Liyong Liu, Lihua He, Fanliang Meng and Jianzhong Zhang

Perception, attitude, knowledge and learning style preference on challenges of antimicrobial resistance and antimicrobial overuse among first year doctors in training and final year medical students

To promote effective education on challenges of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and antimicrobial overuse, it is necessary to understand the current perception, attitude, knowledge and learning style preference...

Authors: Pinyo Rattanaumpawan, Nuttagarn Chuenchom and Visanu Thamlikitkul

Correction to: Lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus meningitis after needlestick injury: a case report

The original article [1] contains several mentions of a potentially misleading assertion which the authors would like to clarify; each mention relating to LCMV needlestick injury and its potential capacity for...

Authors: Sarah Dräger, Anna-Friederike Marx, Fiona Pigny, Pascal Cherpillod, Philip Eisermann, Parham Sendi and Andreas F. Widmer

bla_NDM-5 carried by a hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae with sequence type 29

A carbapenem-resistant hypermucoviscous Klebsiella pneumoniae isolate was recovered from human sputum.

Authors: Yi Yuan, Ying Li, Guangxi Wang, Chengwen Li, Yung-Fu Chang, Wenbi Chen, Siji Nian, Yingyu Mao, Jinping Zhang, Fangcai Zhong and Luhua Zhang

Efficacy of disinfectant-impregnated wipes used for surface disinfection in hospitals: a review

“Ready-to-use” disinfecting wipes (also known as pre-impregnated disinfecting wipe) are broadly used in food industry and domestic situations. Their application in hospitals and healthcare centres for decontam...

Authors: Xinyu Song, Lutz Vossebein and Andrea Zille

Exploring healthcare providers’ mental models of the infection prevention “patient zone” - a concept mapping study

Pathogen transmission plays a major role in the development of healthcare-associated infections. The “patient zone” concept developed as part of the World Health Organization’s “Five moments of hand hygiene” a...

Authors: Jasmina Bogdanovic, Serge Petralito, Simone Passerini, Hugo Sax, Tanja Manser and Lauren Clack

Early-life gut microbiome modulation reduces the abundance of antibiotic-resistant bacteria

Antibiotic-resistant (AR) bacteria are a global threat. AR bacteria can be acquired in early life and have long-term sequelae. Limiting the spread of antibiotic resistance without triggering the development of...

Authors: Giorgio Casaburi, Rebbeca M. Duar, Daniel P. Vance, Ryan Mitchell, Lindsey Contreras, Steven A. Frese, Jennifer T. Smilowitz and Mark A. Underwood

Economic burden of antibiotic resistance in ESKAPE organisms: a systematic review

Antibiotic resistance (ABR) is one of the biggest threats to global health. Infections by ESKAPE (Enterococcus, S. aureus, K. pneumoniae, A. baumannii, P. aeruginosa, and E. coli) organisms are the leading cause ...

Authors: Xuemei Zhen, Cecilia Stålsby Lundborg, Xueshan Sun, Xiaoqian Hu and Hengjin Dong

Screening for carriage of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae in settings of high endemicity: a position paper from an Italian working group on CRE infections

A variety of national and international guidelines exist around the management of carbapenem resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CREs), but some of these are several years old and do not reflect current epidemiology...

Authors: Simone Ambretti, Matteo Bassetti, Pierangelo Clerici, Nicola Petrosillo, Fabio Tumietto, Pierluigi Viale and Gian Maria Rossolini

Serratia marcescens colonization in preterm neonates during their neonatal intensive care unit stay

Nosocomial sepsis is the main problem that preterms have to face during their stay at neonatal intensive care units (NICU). Serratia marcescens is an emerging cause of preterm sepsis but its epidemiology is still...

Authors: Laura Moles, Marta Gómez, Elena Moroder, Esther Jiménez, Diana Escuder, Gerardo Bustos, Ana Melgar, Jeniffer Villa, Rosa del Campo, Fernando Chaves and Juan M. Rodríguez

Antimicrobial susceptibility profile of selected Enterobacteriaceae in wastewater samples from health facilities, abattoir, downstream rivers and a WWTP in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Evaluation of antimicrobial susceptibility profile of various bacterial pathogens in the health facilities, abattoirs and related environment is important to assess potential risk of dissemination of resistant...

Authors: Hemen Tesfaye, Haile Alemayehu, Adey F. Desta and Tadesse Eguale

Correction to: Cross-border comparison of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and AMR prevention measures: the healthcare workers’ perspective

The original article [1] contained a minor editorial typo in the following sentence which has now been corrected:

Authors: J. Keizer, L. M. A. Braakman-Jansen, S. Kampmeier, R. Köck, N. Al Naiemi, R. Te Riet-Warning, N. Beerlage-De Jong, K. Becker and J. E. W. C. Van Gemert-Pijnen

Intrinsic and external determinants of antibiotic prescribing: a multi-level path analysis of primary care prescriptions in Hubei, China

Irrational use of antibiotics is a major driver of development of antibiotic resistance, which heavily threatens population health worldwide. Understanding the mechanism of physician’s antibiotic prescribing d...

Authors: Chenxi Liu, Chaojie Liu, Dan Wang and Xinping Zhang

Gaps in communication between different staff groups and older adult patients foster unnecessary antibiotic prescribing for urinary tract infections in hospitals: a qualitative translation approach

Studies have reported large scale overprescribing of antibiotics for urinary tract infection (UTI) in hospitalised older adults. Older adults often have asymptomatic bacteriuria, and clinicians have been found...

Authors: Paula M. Saukko, Beryl A. Oppenheim, Mike Cooper and Emily K. Rousham

Vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus isolated from camel meat and slaughterhouse workers in Egypt

The emergence of vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) represents a challenge for the treatment of staphylococcal infections in both human and animals worldwide. Although VRSA has been detected in sev...

Authors: Khaled Al-Amery, Mahmoud Elhariri, Alaa Elsayed, Gihan El-Moghazy, Rehab Elhelw, Heba El-Mahallawy, Mohamed El Hariri and Dalia Hamza

Near-ubiquitous presence of a vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium ST117/CT71/vanB –clone in the Rhine-Main metropolitan area of Germany

Whole-genome sequencing analysis of Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium isolates from the Frankfurt metropolitan region revealed that 78/94 isolates were MLST type ST117, cgMLST complex type CT71 with a com...

Authors: Linda Falgenhauer, Moritz Fritzenwanker, Can Imirzalioglu, Katrin Steul, Marlene Scherer, Ursel Heudorf and Trinad Chakraborty

Diagnostic performance of the Xpert Carba-R assay for active surveillance of rectal carbapenemase-producing organisms in intensive care unit patients

There are growing concerns regarding the spread of carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs) among patients in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) and hospitals in South Korea. We have established a screening pro...

Authors: Young Jin Ko, Jeeyong Kim, Ha-Nui Kim, Soo-Young Yoon, Chae Seung Lim and Chang Kyu Lee

Molecular epidemiological analysis and risk factors for acquisition of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacter cloacae complex in a Japanese university hospital

To clarify the molecular epidemiology of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacter cloacae complex (CREC) and the risk factors for acquisition of carbapenemase-producing E. cloacae complex (CPEC).

Authors: Nobuyuki Tetsuka, Aki Hirabayashi, Akane Matsumoto, Keisuke Oka, Yuki Hara, Hiroshi Morioka, Mitsutaka Iguchi, Yuka Tomita, Masato Suzuki, Keigo Shibayama and Tetsuya Yagi

Seasonality of respiratory viruses and bacterial pathogens

Seasonal variation has been observed for various bacterial and viral infections. We aimed to further study seasonality of respiratory viruses and bacterial pathogens in relation to antibiotic use, as well as m...

Authors: Young June Choe, Michael A. Smit and Leonard A. Mermel

Incidence of peripheral intravenous catheter failure among inpatients: variability between microbiological data and clinical signs and symptoms

Peripheral intravenous catheters (PIVCs) are the most widely used invasive devices among inpatients. Catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI) are serious yet preventable events for patients. Although th...

Authors: Ian Blanco-Mavillard, Miguel Ángel Rodríguez-Calero, Joan de Pedro-Gómez, Gaizka Parra-García, Ismael Fernández-Fernández and Enrique Castro-Sánchez

Cross-border comparison of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and AMR prevention measures: the healthcare workers’ perspective

Cross-border healthcare may promote the spread of multidrug-resistant microorganisms (MDRO) and is challenging due to heterogeneous antimicrobial resistance (AMR) prevention measures (APM). The aim of this art...

Authors: J. Keizer, L. M. A. Braakman-Jansen, S. Kampmeier, R. Köck, N. Al Naiemi, R. Te Riet-Warning, N. Beerlage-De Jong, K. Becker and J. E. W. C. Van Gemert-Pijnen

Susceptibility of livestock-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (LA-MRSA) to chlorhexidine digluconate, octenidine dihydrochloride, polyhexanide, PVP-iodine and triclosan in comparison to hospital-acquired MRSA (HA-MRSA) and community-aquired MRSA (CA-MRSA): a standardized comparison

Recent publications have raised concerns of reduced susceptibilities of clinical bacterial isolates towards biocides. This study presents a comparative investigation of the susceptibility of livestock-associat...

Authors: Kathleen Dittmann, Thomas Schmidt, Gerald Müller, Christiane Cuny, Silva Holtfreter, Daniel Troitzsch, Peter Pfaff and Nils-Olaf Hübner

Evaluation of the virucidal efficacy of disinfectant wipes with a test method simulating practical conditions

The use of disinfectant wipes in hospitals is increasing over the last years. These wipes should be able to inactivate microorganisms including viruses on environmental surfaces and to prevent their transfer t...

Authors: Britta Becker, Lars Henningsen, Dajana Paulmann, Birte Bischoff, Daniel Todt, Eike Steinmann, Joerg Steinmann, Florian H. H. Brill and Jochen Steinmann

Impact of a PCR point of care test for influenza A/B on an acute medical unit in a large UK teaching hospital: results of an observational, pre and post intervention study

Influenza viruses is a leading cause of acute respiratory infection, placing a significant burden on healthcare. To reduce hospital transmission, patients clinically suspected of having influenza are isolated ...

Authors: Mark I. Garvey, Martyn A. C. Wilkinson, Craig W. Bradley, Martin Biggs, Vinay Reddy-Kolanu, Husam Osman, Sarah Carmalt and Elisabeth Holden

Practice of over-the-counter dispensary of antibiotics for childhood illnesses in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: a simulated patient encounter study

Dispensary and use of antibiotics without prescriptions from qualified providers is a common practice in countries with poor pharmaceutical regulations and where due focus is not given to rational use. This pr...

Authors: Eyosait Mekonnen Koji, Gebremedhin Beedemariam Gebretekle and Tinsae Alemayehu Tekle

Review on plant antimicrobials: a mechanistic viewpoint

Microbial resistance to classical antibiotics and its rapid progression have raised serious concern in the treatment of infectious diseases. Recently, many studies have been directed towards finding promising ...

Authors: Bahman Khameneh, Milad Iranshahy, Vahid Soheili and Bibi Sedigheh Fazly Bazzaz

New genetic context of lnu(B) composed of two multi-resistance gene clusters in clinical Streptococcus agalactiae ST-19 strains

Clindamycin is a lincosamide antibiotic used to treat staphylococcal and streptococcal infections. Reports of clinical Streptococcus agalactiae isolates with the rare lincosamide resistance/macrolide susceptibili...

Authors: Kaixin Zhou, Dongan Zhu, Ying Tao, Lianyan Xie, Lizhong Han, Yibo Zhang and Jingyong Sun

Understanding determinants of infection control practices in surgery: the role of shared ownership and team hierarchy

Despite a large literature on surgical site infection (SSI), the determinants of prevention behaviours in surgery remain poorly studied. Understanding key social and contextual components of surgical staff beh...

Authors: Rachael Troughton, Victor Mariano, Anne Campbell, Shehan Hettiaratchy, Alison Holmes and Gabriel Birgand

The prevalence of healthcare associated infections among adult inpatients at nineteen large Australian acute-care public hospitals: a point prevalence survey

Australia does not have a national healthcare associated infection (HAI) surveillance program. Only one HAI point prevalence study has been undertaken in 1984. The objective of this study was to estimate the b...

Authors: Philip L. Russo, Andrew J. Stewardson, Allen C. Cheng, Tracey Bucknall and Brett G. Mitchell

Treatment outcomes of drug-resistant tuberculosis in the Netherlands, 2005–2015

Since in low incidence TB countries population migration and complex treatment of drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) patients are major issues, we aimed to analyse patient risk factors associated with the inc...

Authors: Ivan S. Pradipta, Natasha van’t Boveneind-Vrubleuskaya, Onno W. Akkerman, Jan-Willem C. Alffenaar and Eelko Hak

A cost-effectiveness analysis of mupirocin and chlorhexidine gluconate for Staphylococcus aureus decolonization prior to hip and knee arthroplasty in Alberta, Canada compared to standard of care

While decolonization of Staphylococcus aureus reduces surgical site infection (SSI) rates following hip and knee arthroplasty, its cost-effectiveness is uncertain. We sought to examine the cost-effectiveness of a...

Authors: Elissa Rennert-May, John Conly, Stephanie Smith, Shannon Puloski, Elizabeth Henderson, Flora Au and Braden Manns

Extended spectrum beta-lactamase producing Enterobacterales faecal carriage in a medical intensive care unit: low rates of cross-transmission and infection

Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases-producing Enterobacterales (ESBL-E) are disseminating worldwide especially in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) and are responsible for increased health costs and mortality. The aims o...

Authors: Renaud Prevel, Alexandre Boyer, Fatima M’Zali, Thibaut Cockenpot, Agnes Lasheras, Véronique Dubois and Didier Gruson

Prevalence of enteric bacteria and their antimicrobial susceptibility patterns among food handlers in Gondar town, Northwest Ethiopia

Enteric bacterial pathogens are the major causes of food-borne gastroenteritis in humans and remain important public health problems worldwide. The emergence of antimicrobial resistance is a global concern, pa...

Authors: Michael Getie, Wondwossen Abebe and Belay Tessema

Rapid screening and early precautions for carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii carriers decreased nosocomial transmission in hospital settings: a quasi-experimental study

Active surveillance has the potential to prevent nosocomial transmission of carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB). We assessed whether rapid diagnosis using clinical specimen-direct loop-mediated is...

Authors: Norihisa Yamamoto, Shigeto Hamaguchi, Yukihiro Akeda, Pitak Santanirand, Narong Chaihongsa, Suntariya Sirichot, Suwichak Chiaranaicharoen, Hideharu Hagiya, Kouji Yamamoto, Anusak Kerdsin, Kazuhisa Okada, Hisao Yoshida, Shigeyuki Hamada, Kazunori Oishi, Kumthorn Malathum and Kazunori Tomono

Glycerol content within the WHO ethanol-based handrub formulation: balancing tolerability with antimicrobial efficacy

The World Health Organization (WHO) ethanol-based handrub (EBHR) formulation contains 1.45% glycerol as an emollient to protect healthcare workers’ (HCWs) skin against dryness and dermatitis. However, glycerol...

Authors: Mayra Gonçalves Menegueti, Ana Maria Laus, Márcia Aparecida Ciol, Maria Auxiliadora-Martins, Anibal Basile-Filho, Elucir Gir, Daniela Pires, Didier Pittet and Fernando Bellissimo-Rodrigues

Tuberculous abdominal cocoon mimicking peritoneal carcinomatosis

Tuberculous abdominal cocoon is an uncommon manifestation of abdominal tuberculosis. As a rare clinical entity, it is often encountered unexpectedly in patients with small intestinal obstruction. Here we prese...

Authors: Zhi-Xin Meng, Yan Liu, Rui Wu, Kai Shi and Tao Li

Mortality related to Verona Integron-encoded Metallo-β-lactamase-positive Pseudomonas aeruginosa: assessment by a novel clinical tool

Verona Integron-encoded Metallo-β-lactamase-positive Pseudomonas aeruginosa (VIM-PA) can cause nosocomial infections and may be responsible for increased mortality. Multidrug resistance in VIM-PA complicates trea...

Authors: Marjolein C. Persoon, Anne F. Voor in ‘t holt, Maurits P. A. van Meer, Karen C. Bokhoven, Diederik Gommers, Margreet C. Vos and Juliëtte A. Severin

Control of MSSA and MRSA in the United States: protocols, policies, risk adjustment and excuses

Data released by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on March 5, 2019 showed that Staph aureus infections are a major problem in the United States, with 119,000 infections and almost 20,000 ...

Authors: Kevin T. Kavanagh

Evaluation of an in vitro model with a novel statistical approach to measure differences in bacterial survival of extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli on an inanimate surface

The role of environmental contamination in the transmission of Enterobacteriaceae is increasingly recognized. However, factors influencing the duration of survival in the environment have not yet been extensiv...

Authors: Veronica Weterings, Jacobien Veenemans, Amanda Kleefman, Marjolein Kluytmans-van den Bergh, Paul Mulder, Carlo Verhulst, Ina Willemsen and Jan Kluytmans

Access-related infections in two haemodialysis units: results of a nine-year intervention and surveillance program

Access-related infections are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in haemodialysis patients. Our goal was to decrease the rate of these infections by implementing an intervention and surveillance program.

Authors: Ittamar Gork, Ilana Gross, Matan J. Cohen, Carmela Schwartz, Allon E. Moses, Michal Dranitzki Elhalel and Shmuel Benenson