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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized its long anticipated infection control survey for hospitals, telling its inspectors the requirements are effective immediately and can be used to issue citations in unannounced inspections.
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An H3N2 A influenza strain not covered in the current vaccine is circulating in the U.S. and threatens high risk groups with severe infections, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports.
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The immunogenicity of trivalent influenza vaccine is attenuated by the administration of A(H1N1)pdm09 4 months before, an effect partially overcome by the presence of an adjuvant in the former.
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In a single academic medical center, changing from a strategy of prior authorization to prospective audit with feedback led to significantly increased total antibiotic use and use of agents with a broad spectrum of gram-negative activity.
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Accidental laboratory exposure to Coccidioides species is the major cause of clinical laboratory-acquired fungal infection, and coccidiodomycosis is thought to be the least responsive deep mycosis to treatment.
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In a case-control study, older patients who received an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin receptor blocker along with co-trimoxazole had an increased risk of sudden death (unadjusted odds ratio 1.83, 95% confidence interval 1.50 to 2.24). Hyperkalemia is hypothesized to be the underlying mechanism.
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In the fifth and sixth decades of the 20th century, Charles Smith reported the results of skin testing with coccidioidin, a culture filtrate of the mycelial phase of Coccidioides.
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Meningitis is very unlikely in otherwise healthy-appearing febrile infants older than 21 days of age. Thus, cerebrospinal fluid analysis might not be needed as part of a “routine” evaluation of these babies.
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Nationally, nonblack children with otitis media more frequently receive broad-spectrum antibiotics than black children do. The majority of children with otitis media in the United States receive inappropriate treatment with broad-spectrum antibiotics.
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Hospital infection control policies for the management of suspect or documented Ebola Virus disease (EVD) should give consideration to appropriate triage procedures for their labor and delivery units.