AA: 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology/Medicine goes to discoverers of antimicrobials Artemisinin and Avermectin
From DW:Youyou Tu, the chief professor at the China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, began her work with traditional herbal remedies in the 1960s.Focussing on plant Artemisia annua, Tu extracted the active Artemisin ingredient found in plants, then purified it. Tests conducted by the now 84-year-old showed her trials had “unprecedented potency” in treating Malaria, which infects close to 200 million people every year. The infection leaves more than 450,000 people dead globally annually, with most of the victims being children. The other 2015 Nobel prize was for another antimicrobial therapy with an "A", Avermec...
Source: Clinical Cases and Images - October 5, 2015 Category: Journals (General) Source Type: news
Antibiotic research programme launched
Charity plans to develop new antibiotic therapy by early 2020sRelated items from OnMedicaUK public don’t understand meaning of antibiotic resistanceDoctors warned to curb antibiotic prescribingRCGP backs O’Neill’s call for investment in new antimicrobialsTelling storiesPatient safety alert issued on antimicrobial resistance (Source: OnMedica Latest News)
Source: OnMedica Latest News - August 21, 2015 Category: UK Health Source Type: news
Sepsis therapeutic device improved by researchers
An improved spleen-mimicking device has been developed that synergizes with conventional antibiotic therapies and that has been streamlined for near-term translation to the clinic. (Source: ScienceDaily Headlines)
Source: ScienceDaily Headlines - August 20, 2015 Category: Science Source Type: news
Harvard's Wyss Institute improves its sepsis therapeutic device
(Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard) As published in Biomaterials, a Wyss Institute team lead by Founding Director Don Ingber, M.D., Ph.D. has developed an improved spleen-mimicking device that synergizes with conventional antibiotic therapies and that has been streamlined for near-term translation to the clinic. (Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases)
Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases - August 20, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news
Relative Adrenal Insufficiency in Premature Infants: State of the Art
This article discusses of the development of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis during gestation, aspects of what is considered normal function, and the diagnosis and management of the entity of relative adrenal insufficiency in the premature infant. (Source: NeoReviews recent issues)
Source: NeoReviews recent issues - July 31, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Weiss, M. E., Caldarelli, L., Hageman, J. R., Littlejohn, E. Tags: Pediatric Drug Labeling Update Articles Source Type: news
Febrile Neutropenia Pts Treated Quicker Under New ProtocolFebrile Neutropenia Pts Treated Quicker Under New Protocol
A new treatment pathway reduced time to antibiotic therapy for patients with febrile neutropenia presenting in the emergency department. Medscape Medical News (Source: Medscape Hematology-Oncology Headlines)
Source: Medscape Hematology-Oncology Headlines - July 29, 2015 Category: Cancer & Oncology Tags: Hematology-Oncology News Source Type: news
Does Your “Backup” Method Have Your Back? Controversies Surrounding Backup of Rapid Antigen Detection Methods for Group A
Accurate diagnosis of streptococcal pharyngitis followed by appropriate antibiotic therapy is important for the prevention and control of group A streptococcus (GAS) infection and its sequelae. Rapid antigen detection methods (RADTs) for detection of GAS antigen are commonly used to speed the diagnosis of streptococcal pharyngitis; however, reports of false-negative antigen tests are common. In this review, we describe the conflicting strategies that surround GAS testing and reflexive backup testing for samples found to be negative for Streptococcus pyogenes antigen. (Source: Clinical Microbiology Newsletter)
Source: Clinical Microbiology Newsletter - July 8, 2015 Category: Microbiology Authors: Diana R. Hernandez, Donna M. Wolk Source Type: news
Ventilator-associated Infection: Role for Inhaled AntibioticsVentilator-associated Infection: Role for Inhaled Antibiotics
What's the rationale for inhaled antibiotic therapy? Current Opinion in Pulmonary Medicine (Source: Medscape Today Headlines)
Source: Medscape Today Headlines - June 22, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Pulmonary Medicine Journal Article Source Type: news
Statins and Antibiotics: Which Combination Is Safest?Statins and Antibiotics: Which Combination Is Safest?
A patient with multiple comorbidities who is taking several drugs presents with an infection requiring antibiotic therapy. What is safest? Take this case challenge. Medscape Internal Medicine (Source: Medscape Internal Medicine Headlines)
Source: Medscape Internal Medicine Headlines - June 2, 2015 Category: Internal Medicine Tags: Internal Medicine Case Challenge Source Type: news
Short-Course Antimicrobial Therapy May Be Sufficient for Some Intra-Abdominal Infections (FREE)
By Larry Baddour, MD
Dr. Baddour is editor-in-chief of NEJM Journal Watch Infectious Diseases, from which this story was adapted. See full coverage at the link below.In patients with complicated intra-abdominal infections, 4 days of antibiotics may be sufficient after the source has been controlled, … (Source: Physician's First Watch current issue)
Source: Physician's First Watch current issue - May 21, 2015 Category: Primary Care Source Type: news
Less is more: fatal C. difficile colitis after empiric antibiotics
Aspiration pneumonitis
4 out of 5 stars
Antibiotics “Just-In-Case” in a Patient With Aspiration Pneumonitis. Joundi RA et al. JAMA Intern Med 2015 Apr 1;175:489-490
Reference
This very brief but very important case report contains more key points than most papers 10 times as long. The case describes a 50-year-old man with cerebral palsy and a known seizure disorder who had several witnessed tonic-clonic seizure episodes treated with a benzodiazepine. Subsequent chest x-ray revealed multiple bibasilar opacities consistent with aspiration.
The patient was started on piperacillin-tazobactam. Although he showed si...
Source: The Poison Review - April 9, 2015 Category: Toxicology Authors: Leon Tags: Medical adverse drug event aspiration pneumonia aspiration pneumonitis clostridium difficile colitis Source Type: news
CAP Treatment Plans Have Similar Outcomes (CME/CE)
(MedPage Today) -- No significant differences among three approaches to antibiotic therapy for community-acquired pneumonia. (Source: MedPage Today Infectious Disease)
Source: MedPage Today Infectious Disease - April 2, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news
AAO-HNSF updated clinical practice guideline: Adult sinusitis
(American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery) Sinusitis affects about one in eight adults in the United States, resulting in over 30 million annual diagnoses. The direct cost of managing acute and chronic sinusitis exceeds $11 billion per year. More than one in five antibiotics prescribed in adults are for sinusitis, making it the fifth most common diagnosis responsible for antibiotic therapy. (Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases)
Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases - April 1, 2015 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news
Neonatal Early-Onset Sepsis: Epidemiology and Risk Assessment
Neonatal early-onset sepsis (EOS) continues to be a significant source of morbidity and mortality among newborns, especially among very low-birth-weight infants. Epidemiologic risk factors for EOS have been defined, and considerable resources are devoted to the identification and evaluation of infants at risk for EOS. The widespread implementation of intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis for the prevention of early-onset neonatal group B streptococcal disease has reduced the overall incidence of neonatal EOS and influenced the microbiology of persistent early-onset infection. Recommendations for perinatal risk factor–ba...
Source: NeoReviews recent issues - April 1, 2015 Category: Pediatrics Authors: Mukhopadhyay, S., Puopolo, K. M. Tags: Pediatric Drug Labeling Update Articles Source Type: news
Blood Cultures: the Importance of Meeting Pre-Analytical Requirements in Reducing Contamination, Optimizing Sensitivity of Detection, and Clinical Relevance
The primary goal of the clinical microbiology laboratory is to provide reliable, timely, and clinically relevant diagnostic test results. Blood cultures are one of the most important specimens managed by the clinical microbiology laboratory and are the primary and most sensitive method for diagnosing blood stream infections (bacteremia, fungemia, and sepsis), in addition to influencing appropriate antimicrobial therapy. Of the three phases of laboratory testing, pre-analytical, analytical, and post-analytical, the former is the most challenging for the clinical microbiology laboratory to control. (Source: Clinical Microbiology Newsletter)
Source: Clinical Microbiology Newsletter - March 24, 2015 Category: Microbiology Authors: James W. Snyder Source Type: news
