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Infection risk tool shows promise in Dutch study

Research by Dutch investigators suggests that a user-friendly, visual instrument for measuring the quality of infection control and antimicrobial use could be useful for targeting interventions in hospitals and nursing homes.

Studies shed more light on managing VRE bacteremia in hospital patients

Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) have become an increasingly common cause of healthcare-related bacteremia, and two new studies published yesterday in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy shed new light on managing the infections, one exploring treatment with high-dose daptomycin and another that found longer exposure to vancomycin, fluoroquinolone, or meropenem was associated with tha

Study: MCR-4 and MCR-5 genes prevalent in China's pigs, poultry

A research team based in China yesterday reported that the newly identified colistin-resistance genes MCR-4 and MCR-5 occur widely in the country's pigs and poultry, according to a study in PLoS One.

Our weekly wrap-up of antimicrobial stewardship & antimicrobial resistance scans

Study: MCR-4 and MCR-5 genes prevalent in China's pigs, poultry

Originally published by CIDRAP News Mar 15

A research team based in China yesterday reported that the newly identified colistin-resistance genes MCR-4 and MCR-5 occur widely in the country's pigs and poultry, according to a study in PLoS One.

TB incidence falling in Europe, but drug-resistant cases rising

A new surveillance report from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) shows that the tuberculosis (TB) incidence rate in Europe is declining by an average of 4.3% a year, the fastest decline in the world compared with other regions. But officials warn that it's not falling fast enough to achieve the World Health Organization (WHO) goal of TB elimination in Europe by 2050.

New e-book provides global primer on antimicrobial stewardship

The British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (BSAC) today released a free e-book on global antimicrobial stewardship.

CARB-X funds potential antibiotic against CRE superbugs

In a first for a Japanese company, CARB-X, a public-private collaboration that supports companies to combat antimicrobial resistance, has awarded Shionogi, of Osaka, $4.7 million to support the development of a novel beta-lactam antibiotic with potent activity against the worrisome superbugs that produce carbapenemase, including BL/BLI-resistant carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE), CARB-X said in a news release today.

Study finds contact precautions did not reduce drug-resistant infections

A 9-year single-center study by Columbia University scientists published yesterday in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology found that decreases in multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) were likely not due to implementing universal contact precautions (UCPs).

Our weekly wrap-up of antimicrobial stewardship & antimicrobial resistance scans

Study finds contact precautions did not reduce drug-resistant infections

A 9-year single-center study by Columbia University scientists published yesterday in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology found that decreases in multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) were likely not due to implementing universal contact precautions (UCPs).

Survey finds audit and feedback key to antibiotic stewardship success

A survey of 244 members of three infectious diseases societies reveals that the most common approached to antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) are antibiotic reviews with prospective audit and feedback (PAF), prior authorization for select antibiotics, and guideline development, according to a study today in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

WHO: Nigeria's Lassa fever outbreak slowing but far from contained

The pace of new infections in Nigeria's Lassa fever outbreak is starting to slow, but the epidemic is far from contained, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said yesterday in a statement.

Urine culture on hospital admission tied to longer antibiotic therapy

Texas researchers who analyzed data from 230 US hospitals discovered that patients with a urine culture taken on the day of hospital admission receive more days of antibiotics and have a longer hospital stay than do patients who do not have a urine culture, according to their study yesterday in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology (ICHE).

Candida auris cases in Europe on the rise, with 620 since 2013

From 2013 through 2017 European officials recorded 620 cases of Candida auris, mostly from four large outbreaks, and 110 of them (17.7%) involved bloodstream infections, according to a report today in Eurosurveillance.

Statewide Colorado stewardship collaborative shows promise in UTI Rx

Today in Clinical Infectious Diseases Colorado researchers report declining fluoroquinolone use after initiating a statewide stewardship collaborative to improve the diagnosis and treatment of inpatient urinary tract infections (UTIs) and skin and other soft-tissue infections (SSTIs).

Our weekly wrap-up of antimicrobial stewardship & antimicrobial resistance scans

Surveillance network finds more evidence for global spread of MCR gene

Tests on clinical samples collected from a large global antimicrobial resistance surveillance network confirmed the worldwide spread of the colistin-resistance gene MCR, a research team based at the International Health Management Associates in Schaumberg, Ill., reported yesterday in PLoS One.

Defensive medicine found common when prescribing antibiotics

A study group with the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) reports that 45% of specialists in infectious diseases and clinical microbiology sometimes worried and 29% often worried about malpractice implications when prescribing or advising on antibiotic prescriptions, and 85% reported defensive behaviors when prescribing, according to a study today in the Journal of Antimicrobial Ch

Study finds racial disparities in invasive MRSA incidence remain

A study today in Clinical Infectious Diseases shows that while rates of healthcare-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have decreased in the United States, racial disparities in MRSA rates have not changed.

San Francisco officials report measles cluster, plus related case in Nevada

The San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH) yesterday issued a health advisory about six confirmed measles cases, plus another from Nevada linked to the cluster. The Bay-area cases are from Santa Clara (5) and Alameda (1) counties and involve unvaccinated people.

Our weekly wrap-up of antimicrobial stewardship & antimicrobial resistance scans

English health officials issue written warning about antibiotic prescribing

England's chief medical officer has sent letters to more than 8,000 general practitioners (GPs) telling them that they're overprescribing antibiotics, according to a report today in Pulse, a UK medical publication.

Study finds high rate of MDRO colonization in new nursing home patients

Nearly 57% of short-stay nursing home residents harbor multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) near the time of admission and at discharge, according to University of Michigan researchers.

Plasmid-mediated MCR-5 gene detected in isolates from Chinese pigs

Chinese and Swedish researchers have detected the colistin resistance gene MCR-5 in an Aeromonas hydrophila isolate from pigs in rural China, according to a study today in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy.

Study finds overreporting of healthcare-associated C diff in urban hospital

A study yesterday in the American Journal of Infection Control has found that only 62% of reported cases of healthcare facility–onset Clostridium difficile (HO-CDI) at a New York hospital met clinical criteria.

Multidrug-resistant bacteria found in many cirrhosis patients

An international team of researchers reported yesterday that more than a third of patients hospitalized with liver cirrhosis and bacterial infections were infected with multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens, according to a news release from the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL).

Our weekly wrap-up of antimicrobial stewardship & antimicrobial resistance scans

Multidrug-resistant bacteria found in many cirrhosis patients

An international team of researchers reported yesterday that more than a third of patients hospitalized with liver cirrhosis and bacterial infections were infected with multidrug-resistant (MDR) pathogens, according to a news release from the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL).