Infectious Disease Topics
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Prolonged Empiric Antibiotic Therapy (PEAT) in Adult Intensive Care Units
Nine hundred ninety-eight patients admitted to 67 adult ICUs in 32 hospitals in the United States over a 24-hour period in 2011 were studied. Prolonged empiric antibiotic therapy was defined as continuing empiric antibiotics beyond 72 hours in patients in the absence of adjudicated infection as defined by CDC criteria. Three hundred thirty-three of 660 (50%) antibiotics were continued for at least 72 hours in patients who did not meet the CDC case definition of infection. Suspected pneumonia was the most common diagnosis in patients receiving PEAT. ICUs using invasive techniques to diagnose ventilator-associated pneumonia had lower rates of PEAT.
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Longer Course Therapy for Lyme Disease Is Not Beneficial
A randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial from the Netherlands found that longer-term antibiotic therapy for Lyme disease did not improve health-related quality of life compared to a standard course of treatment.
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Infectious Disease Alert Updates
TB in Captive Elephants in the United States; TB Skin Testing and IGRA: An Ongoing Source of Confusion; LASIK, Humidifiers, and Mycobacterium chelonae Ocular Infections
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Improve Treatment for Community-acquired Pneumonia
In patients with suspected community-acquired pneumonia, early chest CT significantly changed management decisions.
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Saccharomyces Cerevisiae var boulardii ( S. boulardii ) and Antibiotic-associated Diarrhea
Saccharomyces boulardii administration failed to prevent antibiotic-associated diarrhea in a large randomized trial.
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Antibiotic Use in Treatment of Children with Uncomplicated Severe Acute Malnutrition
Universal antibiotic use in the community-based treatment of uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition in children likely is not necessary in regions where suitable access to healthcare facilities is available.
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Pediatric Coccidioidomycosis in California, 2000-2012
The incidence of pediatric coccidioidomycosis in California has increased significantly from 2000 until 2012, along with hospitalization for complicated disease. Latino children were most commonly infected, but African-American children were significantly more likely to be hospitalized.
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Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole versus Placebo for Skin Abscesses After Incision and Drainage
A multicenter, double-blind, randomized clinical trial found that a 7-day course of trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole following incision and drainage (I&D) resulted in a higher rate of cure for skin abscesses compared to I&D and placebo (80.5% vs 73.6%, respectively; P = 0.005).
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Zika Virus: Effects on the Fetus
While the Zika virus has been indolent in many South American, Central American, and Caribbean countries, its recent association with microcephaly (and neurologic impairment) has created an outburst of media alerts, response from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and travel recommendations, particularly as the world moves closer to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil.
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Infectious Disease Alert Updates
Put a Lid on It; ESBL Is Blasé Compared with this Superbug; Cleaner Data on Cleaning Needed; All Those Fake Knees and Hips