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In 1967, in marburg, a medieval university town north of Frankfurt, Germany, on the Lahn River, several employees of a Behringwerke AG, a manufacturer of vaccines, were hospitalized at the University Medical Clinic with a severe influenza-like illness.
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Anemia of Chronic Disease (ACD) is a common disorder occurring in patients with acute and chronic inflammatory conditions. ACD is associated with infectious diseases, as well as with malignancies and autoimmune disorders. The pathophysiology of ACD involves abnormalities in iron homeostasis, impaired erythropoiesis, and blunted responses to erythropoietin, brought about by mediators of inflammation such as TNF-alpha, interferon-gamma, and interleukins.
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The interpretation of tuberculin skin tests (tst) is challenging and controversial, especially in the face of previously administered BCG vaccine. In Switzerland, a country where TB infection is not common but where BCG had previously been routinely given, Zysset and colleagues prospectively evaluated 2- step (second test done 8-15 days after the first for possible booster effect) TST results in 5117 hospital employees, in view of potential risk factors for TB infection.
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On February 10, 2005, the CDCs Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended routine meningococcal immunization of all children between ages 11 and 12, with catch up immunization targeted to teens entering high school and college freshmen living in dormitories.
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The exuberant rainfall in the southwestern United States this year has led to the greening of the deserts, highlighted by spectacular displays of wildflowers. But it may not be just the plant life that has benefited. A number of human pathogens may find the conditions just right.
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A major focus of the recent Conference Retrovirus and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in Boston in February 2005, was the issue of cardiovascular disease and risk factors in patients with HIV infection.
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Is your state next? Laws requiring disclosure of individual hospital infection rates are sweeping the nation. Four statesPennsylvania, Illinois, Florida, and Missourihave passed infection rate disclosure laws, and 20 others have introduced bills.
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Although streptokinase is widely used in the management of pleural infection, a large, randomized, controlled trial showed no benefit in terms of mortality, need for surgery, or hospital stay.
