The main objective of this study was to investigate the prognostic value of early systematic chest computed tomography (CT) with quantification of lung lesions in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) ...patients.
We studied 572 patients diagnosed with COVID-19 (confirmed using polymerase chain reaction) for whom a chest CT was performed at hospital admission. Visual quantification was used to classify patients as per the percentage of lung parenchyma affected by COVID-19 lesions: normal CT, 0–10%, 11–25%, 26–50%, 51–75% and >75%. The primary endpoint was severe disease, defined by death or admission to the intensive care unit in the 7 days following first admission.
The mean patient age was 66.0 ± 16.0 years, and 343/572 (60.0%) were men. The primary endpoint occurred in 206/572 patients (36.0%). The extent of lesions on initial CT was independently associated with prognosis (odds ratio = 2.35, 95% confidence interval 1.24–4.46; p < 0.01). Most patients with lung involvement >50% (66/95, 69.5%) developed severe disease compared to patients with lung involvement of 26–50% (70/171, 40.9%) and ≤25% (70/306, 22.9%) (p < 0.01 and p < 0.01, respectively). None of the patients with normal CT (0/14) had severe disease.
Chest CT findings at admission are associated with outcome in COVID-19 patients.
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We report a rare case of aorto-bi-iliac prosthetic allograft mucormycosis in a 57-year-old immunocompetent patient in France. Outcome was favorable after surgery and dual antifungal therapy with ...liposomal amphotericin B and isavuconazole. In a literature review, we identified 12 other cases of prosthetic vascular or heart valve mucormycosis; mortality rate was 38%.
Rare fungal pathogens are emerging as agents of invasive fungal infections. We analyzed 13 cases of fungal infections caused by Kazachstania (Arxiozyma) spp. in Strasbourg University Hospital, ...Strasbourg, France. Among the cases, 4 patients had proven fungal disease (3 cases of invasive fungal disease and 1 mucocutaneous infection) and 9 were colonized by Kazachstania (Arxiozyma) spp. Candida albicans was also isolated from 11 of the 13 patients. None of the patients with proven invasive fungal disease met host criteria, but most had underlying diseases. All strains were identified as K. telluris by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry, and 3 were confirmed as K. bovina by internal transcribed spacer sequencing. For all tested strains, the MICs for fluconazole were >2 μg/mL. Emergence of this rare fungal infection might be explained by the increasing number of patients with immunocompromised conditions and gastroesophageal diseases.
PCRs targeting 16S ribosomal DNA (16S PCR) followed by Sanger's sequencing can identify bacteria from normally sterile sites and complement standard analyzes, but they are expensive. We conducted a ...retrospective study in the Strasbourg University Hospital to assess the clinical impact of 16S PCR sequencing on patients' treatments according to different sample types.
From 2014 to 2018, 806 16S PCR samples were processed, and 191 of those were positive.
Overall, the test impacted the treatment of 62 of the 191 patients (32%). The antibiotic treatment was rationalized in 31 patients (50%) and extended in 24 patients (39%), and an invasive procedure was chosen for 7 patients (11%) due to the 16S PCR sequencing results. Positive 16S PCR sequencing results on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) had a greater impact on patients' management than positive ones on cardiac valves (p = 0.044). The clinical impact of positive 16S PCR sequencing results were significantly higher when blood cultures were negative (p < 0.001), and this difference appeared larger when both blood and sample cultures were negative (p < 0.001). The diagnostic contribution of 16S PCR was higher in patients with previous antibiotic treatment (p < 0.001).
In all, 16S PCR analysis has a significant clinical impact on patient management, particularly for suspected CSF infections, for patients with culture-negative samples and for those with previous antibiotic treatments.
•AmpC β-lactamase-hyperproducing Enterobacterales (ABHLE) bacteremia is emerging.•ABHLE are resistant to third-generation cephalosporins.•Carbapenems are the treatment of choice.•ABHLE usually ...remains susceptible to cefepime.•There was no difference in mortality between cefepime- and carbapenem-based treatment.
AmpC β-lactamase-hyperproducing Enterobacterales (ABLHE) bloodstream infections (BSI) are emerging and leading to therapeutic challenges worldwide. Prescriptions of carbapenems may lead to the emergence of resistance. This study aimed to compare cefepime with carbapenems for the treatment of third-generation cephalosporin-resistant ABLHE BSI.
This retrospective multicenter study included patients with ABLHE BSI from two tertiary hospitals in France, between July 2017 and July 2022. Non-AmpC-producing Enterobacterales, extended-spectrum β-lactamase, and carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales were excluded. Cefepime was prescribed only in case of minimal inhibitory concentration ≤1 mg/l. The primary outcome was 30-day in-hospital mortality from the date of index blood culture. Secondary outcomes were infection recurrence and treatment toxicity. An inverse probability of treatment weighting approach was used to balance the baseline characteristics between the two groups.
We analyzed 164 BSI, which included 77 in the cefepime group and 87 in the carbapenem group. In the weighted cohort, the 30-day mortality rates were similar between the cefepime group (23.3%) and the carbapenem group (19.6%) with a relative risk of 1.19 (95% confidence interval, 0.61-2.33 P = 0.614). No significant difference in recurrence or toxicity was found between the two groups.
This study adds evidence in favor of the use of cefepime for treating third-generation cephalosporin-resistant ABLHE BSI in case of minimal inhibitory concentration ≤ 1 mg/l, which could spare carbapenems.
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Background
Streptococci involved in infective endocarditis (IE) primarily comprise alpha- or non-hemolytic streptococci (ANHS). Moreover, beta-hemolytic streptococci (BHS) can be involved, and ...guidelines recommend the addition of gentamicin for the first 2 weeks of treatment and the consideration of early surgery in such cases. This study compared the morbidity and mortality associated with IE depending on the microorganisms involved (BHS, ANHS, staphylococci, and enterococci).
Methods
We conducted a retrospective observational study between 2012 and 2017 in a single hospital in France. The endpoints were overall in-hospital mortality, 1-year mortality and the occurrence of complications.
Results
We analyzed 316 episodes of definite IE including 150 (38%), 96 (25%), 46 (12%), and 24 cases (6%) of staphylococcal, ANHS, enterococcal, and BHS IE, respectively. In-hospital mortality was significantly higher in the staphylococcal (
n
= 40; 26.7%) and BHS groups (
n
= 6; 25.0%) than in the ANHS (
n
= 9; 9.4%) and enterococcal groups (
n
= 5; 10.9%) (all
p
< 0.01). The rates of septic shock and cerebral emboli were also higher in the BHS group than in the ANHS group
n
= 7 (29.2%) vs.
n
= 3 (3.1%),
p
< 0.001;
n
= 7 (29.2%) vs.
n
= 12 (12.5%);
p
= 0.05, respectively.
Conclusion
This study confirmed that BHS IE has a more severe prognosis than ANHS IE. The virulence of BHS may be similar to that of staphylococci, justifying increased monitoring of these patients and more ‘aggressive’ treatments such as early surgery.
Background and Objectives: Chest radiography remains the most frequently used examination in emergency departments (ED) for the diagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), despite its poor ...diagnostic accuracy compared with ultra-low-dose (ULD) chest computed tomography (CT). However, although ULD CT appears to be an attractive alternative to radiography, its organizational impact in ED remains unknown. Our objective was to compare the relevant timepoints in ED management of CT and chest radiography. Materials and Methods: We conducted a retrospective study in two ED of a University Hospital including consecutive patients consulting for a CAP between 1 March 2019 and 29 February 2020 to assess the organizational benefits of ULD chest CT and chest radiography (length of stay (LOS) in the ED, time of clinical decision after imaging). Overlap weights (OW) were used to reduce covariate imbalance between groups. Results: Chest radiography was performed for 1476 patients (mean age: 76 years 63; 86; 55% men) and ULD chest CT for 133 patients (mean age: 71 57; 83; 53% men). In the weighted population with OW, ULD chest CT did not significantly alter the ED LOS compared with chest radiography (11.7 to 12.2; MR 0.96 0.85; 1.09), although it did significantly reduce clinical decision time (6.9 and 9.5 h; MR 0.73 0.59; 0.89). Conclusion: There is real-life evidence that a strategy with ULD chest CT can be considered to be a relevant approach to replace chest radiography as part of the diagnostic workup for CAP in the ED without increasing ED LOS.
Multidrug resistant (MDR) bacteria are increasingly observed in nosocomial and community-acquired settings. Anaerobes are no exception to this rule, but there are fewer reports of MDR in the ...scientific literature on anaerobes than there are for other bacteria. In this short case report, we describe the first case of bacteraemia caused by a multidrug-resistant
, which produces a carbapenemase encoded by the
gene. This bacteraemia followed a digestive surgery operation. Surprisingly, these findings did not lead to a change in antibiotic therapy, probably because the patient's clinical state had improved. Nevertheless this report calls for better knowledge of anaerobic bacteria and for a systematic antimicrobial stewardship procedure following bacteraemia.
Cases of Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PCP) in patients suffering from COVID-19 were described in patients with various comorbidities and outcomes. The diagnosis of PCP in these patients is ...difficult due to clinical and radiological similarities. We carried out this study in order to better describe potentially at-risk patients and their outcomes. We retrospectively analyzed all patients with a P. jirovecii PCR performed in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, tracheal aspirate, or sputum within a month after the COVID-19 diagnosis. Fifty-seven patients with COVID-19 infection were tested for P. jirovecii. Among 57 patients with COVID-19, four patients had a concomitant positive P. jirovecii PCR. These four patients were elderly with a mean age of 78. Two patients were immunocompromised, and the two others presented only diabetes mellitus. Three patients presented an ARDS requiring transfer to the ICU and mechanical ventilation. All patients presented lymphocytopenia. Three patients had probable PCP, and one had proven PCP. All patients died within two months after hospital admission. These co-infections are rare but severe, therefore, PCP should be considered in case of worsening of the condition of patients with severe COVID-19.
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