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Study finds race, male sex associated with MRSA bacteremia

A multicenter study of patients with MRSA bloodstream infections caused by a community-associated strain of the pathogen has identified race as a primary association, researchers reported yesterday in the Journal of Infectious Diseases.

Novel antifungal drug shows early promise against Candida auris

A novel antifungal drug has shown in vitro activity against the emerging fungal pathogen Candida auris, researchers report in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy.

CDC issues final cholera vaccine recommendations for adult travelers

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today finalized its cholera vaccine recommendation for adults traveling to disease outbreak areas, based on June 2016 advice from its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP).

Brazil declares end to Zika emergency

Yesterday Brazil's Ministry of Health lifted the state of emergency caused by the Zika virus, due to the country's dwindling case counts of the mosquito-borne disease.

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

Rise of carbapenemase-producing enterobacteriaceae reported in Belgium

Belgian researchers are reporting a rise in carbapenemase-producing enterobacteriaceae (CPE), including a colistin-resistant MCR-1 producer, in hospitals and the community in Belgium.

Three hospital-related MERS cases in Saudi Arabia

Over the weekend and through today, Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH) reported four more MERS-CoV cases, including two linked to possible healthcare exposures.

China reports second H9N2 case of the year

Tests have confirmed another H9N2 avian influenza infection, in a 32-year-old Beijing man who had symptoms such as fever, cough, and sore throat but has since recovered, according to a notice from the Beijing Centers for Disease Control (Beijing CDC) translated and posted by FluTrackers, an infectious disease news message board.

Brazil's outbreak yellow fever virus has mutated significantly

The yellow fever virus that has caused a large outbreak in Brazil has undergone substantial mutations, but these changes should not affect vaccine effectiveness, Brazilian investigators said, according to a story today in Brazil's O Globo newspaper.

Study finds dramatic impact tied to stewardship at a small, rural hospital

Implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program (ASP) at a rural community hospital in Georgia significantly reduced Clostridium difficile infections (CDIs), antimicrobial use, and overall drug costs, researchers reported yesterday in the American Journal of Infection Control.

Two more MERS cases linked to hospitals in Saudi Arabia

The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health (MOH) said today two more cases of MERS have been detected in patients who had been exposed at healthcare facilities in Bishah and Riyadh.

A 57-year-old expatriate male in Bishah is in stable condition after being diagnosed as having MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus). The patient is a healthcare worker and is asymptomatic.

Report describes rapid Zika spread, impact of control steps in Singapore

In the first-of-its-kind comprehensive review of a Zika outbreak in Asia, researchers from Singapore yesterday reported how easily the virus can be introduced and spread even when vector control programs are good, adding that response measures had a measurable impact on curbing the disease. Writing in The Lancet Infectious Diseases yesterday, the team described an outbreak that began in August 2016.

CDC reports count of US Candida auris infections up to 77 cases

In today's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, investigators from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and several state health departments say a total of 77 clinical cases of the emerging multidrug-resistant fungus Candida auris have now been reported from seven states.

Antibiotic allergy testing improves appropriate prescribing, study finds

Incorporating antibiotic allergy testing (AAT) into an antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) program can improve antibiotic usage and appropriateness, according to a study yesterday in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Two new MERS cases reported in Saudi Arabia

The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health (MOH) reported two  new cases of MERS-CoV today.

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

Antibiotic allergy testing improves appropriate prescribing, study finds

Incorporating antibiotic allergy testing (AAT) into an antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) program can improve antibiotic usage and appropriateness, according to a study yesterday in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Yemen's cholera case count nearly doubles

According to the latest cholera situation report published by the World Health Organization (WHO), there are 23,000 new suspected cases of the diarrheal disease in Yemen and 242 related deaths since the last update was published Apr 27.

Study: 1 in 4 pneumonia patients fail initial antibiotic therapy

Nearly one in four adult outpatients prescribed antibiotic monotherapy for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) do not respond to treatment, according to a paper presented at the 2017 American Thoracic Society International Conference.

Six more cases of Ebola reported in DRC

According to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) situation report, there are now 43 suspected cases of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This is six more probable cases since the last situation report released yesterday.

MCR-1 detected in Australian E coli isolates

Researchers have identified the colistin resistance gene MCR-1 in Escherichia coli samples from two patients in Australia, according to a report yesterday in Emerging Infectious Diseases.

Another MERS case confirmed in Qatar

The Qatari Ministry of Health reported another case of MERS-CoV detected in the country, the country's third case this year, according to a story today in The Peninsula, a Qatari daily.

WHO: DRC Ebola outbreak smaller than previously reported

The World Health Organization's  (WHO's) regional office for Africa released a new Ebola situation report today, noting fewer cases than previously reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Study documents drug resistance in Chinese gonorrhea isolates

A surveillance study yesterday in BMC Infectious Diseases reports high levels of resistance to previously recommended antimicrobials in Neisseria gonorrhea isolates from a city in eastern China.

Paper lays out hurdles for developing rapid antibiotic susceptibility tests

An international group of specialists from hospitals, research institutes, public health agencies, and diagnostics firms yesterday published a paper outlining the challenges to developing novel and rapid antibiotic susceptibility tests (ASTs). The consensus statement was published in Nature Reviews Microbiology.

Nigeria's big Lassa outbreak blamed on rats, not human-human spread

A genomic analysis indicates that Nigeria’s big Lassa fever outbreak this year has been driven by transmission from rats, not by human-to-human spread, easing worries about a possible Lassa superbug, according to a study described yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

Study finds current diagnostic tests missing MDR-TB cases in South Africa

An international team of researchers found that the World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed diagnostic tests for drug-resistant tuberculosis (TB) are missing a substantial number of multidrug-resistant (MDR) TB cases in South Africa. The study appeared yesterday in Lancet Infectious Diseases.