2021 Update on the Clinical Management and Diagnosis of Kawasaki Disease
AbstractPurpose of ReviewProvide an updated review of the clinical management and diagnosis of Kawasaki disease with inclusion of potential diagnostic difficulties with multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.Recent FindingsAdjunctive corticosteroid therapy has been shown to reduce the rate of coronary artery dilation in children at high risk for IVIG resistance in multiple Japanese clinical studies (most notably RAISE study group). Additional adjunctive therapies (etanercept, infliximab, cyclosporin) may also provide limited benefit, but data is limited to single studies a...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - February 6, 2021 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
What Is the Impact of Lockdowns on Dengue?
AbstractPurpose of ReviewSocietal lockdowns in response to the COVID-19 pandemic have led to unprecedented disruption to daily life across the globe. A collateral effect of these lockdowns may be a change to transmission dynamics of a wide range of infectious diseases that are all highly dependent on rates of contact between humans. With timing, duration and intensity of lockdowns varying country-to-country, the wave of lockdowns in 2020 present a unique opportunity to observe how changes in human contact rates, disease control and surveillance affect dengue virus transmission in a global natural experiment. We explore the...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - January 21, 2021 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Erythema Nodosum and a Cavitary Lung Lesion in a Febrile Returned Traveler from Arizona: a Case of Coccidioidomycosis
AbstractCoccidioidomycosis incidence has been increasing recently in endemic regions. The disease can manifest with variable pulmonary and cutaneous presentations, challenging the clinical diagnosis. Our case highlights the differential diagnosis that must be considered for presentations of erythema nodosum and cavitating lung lesions and the importance of synthesizing the entire patient history —including travel history—for construction of appropriate diagnostic and treatment plans. (Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports)
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - January 6, 2021 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Culture of Safety: Impact on Improvement in Infection Prevention Process and Outcomes
AbstractPurposeSafety culture is known to be related to a wide range of outcomes, and measurement of safety culture is now required for many hospitals in the U.S.A. In previous reviews, the association with outcomes has been limited by the research design and strength of the evidence. The goal of this review was to examine recent literature on the relationship between safety culture and infection prevention and control-related (IPC) processes and healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) in U.S. healthcare organizations. We also sought to quantitatively characterize the challenges to empirically establishing these relationsh...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - December 2, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Daily Disinfection of the Hospital Room and Non-critical Items: Barriers and Practical Approaches
AbstractPurpose of ReviewDaily disinfection of the hospital room and non-critical items is an important component of healthcare infection prevention. Barriers exist for heightened and reliable daily disinfection in the healthcare setting, and definitions are lacking for clean or acceptable levels of microbial burden on hospital surfaces.Recent FindingsCurrent methods for manual, daily cleaning of patient rooms are likely suboptimal for bioburden reduction. The use of UV-C and HP vapor light for decontamination of HTS may reduce bioburden yet requires investment in both resources and deployment. Applying the principles of H...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - November 16, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Asymptomatic Bacterial Vaginosis: to Treat or Not to Treat?
AbstractPurpose of ReviewThe purpose of this review is to summarize current evidence for and against the treatment of asymptomatic bacterial vaginosis (BV) in women.Recent FindingsAsymptomatic BV is common although its pathogenesis remains incompletely understood. In favor of treating asymptomatic BV is the large body of data supporting that it is sexually transmitted. Along these lines and similar to other STIs, treatment of BV, regardless of symptom status, should be considered to reduce adverse outcomes of infection (i.e., adverse birth outcomes, infertility, post-gynecologic surgery infections) and prevent further sexu...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - November 13, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Phage Therapy: Primer and Role in the Treatment of MDROs
AbstractPurpose of ReviewGiven increasing prevalence of multi-drug resistant organisms (MDROs), there is a significant interest in exploring non-antibiotic therapeutic options. We discuss basics of bacteriophage therapy (BT) and its role in the treatment of infections due to MDRO.Recent FindingsBT employs lytic viruses to infect and lyse bacterial pathogens and is an emerging treatment strategy for treatment of infections caused by MDROs. We summarize key characteristics that make BT an attractive option against MDROs, discuss recent cases in which BT was successfully used to treat antibiotic recalcitrant infections, and d...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - November 13, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Clinical Challenges in an Outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China: Concerns from Frontiers
AbstractPurpose of ReviewIn December 2019, outbreaks of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infected pneumonia patients were discovered in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. With the spread of the epidemic, new cases have been found in other regions of China and abroad. This review summarizes the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission pathways, high-risk factors, diagnostic points, pathogenesis, and therapeutic drugs to provide the prevention and treatment theories for COVID-19.Recent FindingsCOVID-19 is highly contagious and is transmitted mainly through the respiratory tract. Mo...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - September 22, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
COVID-19 in the Pediatric Population —Review and Current Evidence
AbstractPurpose of ReviewCoronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has major health and economic impacts. We review disease characteristics in children.Recent FindingsChildren comprise 1 –2% of the diagnosed cases, and typically suffer mild disease. The median age of infected children is 3.3–11 years, and male/female ratio is 1.15–1.55. Common symptoms in children include upper respiratory symptoms (26–54%), cough (44–54%), fever (32–65%), and gastrointestinal (15–30% ) symptoms. Substantial proportion (4–23%) are asymptomatic. Death rates are up to 0.7%. Risk factors associated with severe disease are ...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - September 18, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Updates on Combination Therapy for Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Bacteremia
AbstractPurpose of ReviewMethicillin-resistantStaphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteremia is associated with a large clinical burden and high rates of treatment failure with first-line treatment options. Literature for combination antimicrobial therapies for initial treatment or salvage therapy in the setting of persistent bacteremia is developing.Recent FindingsVarious combination strategies have emerged for the treatment of MRSA bacteremia, including vancomycin or daptomycin in combination with either anti-staphylococcal penicillins, early- and late-generation cephalosporins, ceftaroline, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, or fo...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - September 8, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Adenovirus Infections in Immunocompetent Children
AbstractPurpose of ReviewThe focus of this review is on human adenovirus (HAdV) infections in immunocompetent children.Recent FindingsHAdV infections are ubiquitous among children under 5 years of age. To date, over 100 different HAdV genotypes have been identified using genomic and bioinformatic analyses. While the vast majority of infections are mild or asymptomatic, severe, life-threatening manifestations including respiratory failure, meningoencephalitis, myocarditis, and disse minated disease can occur in otherwise healthy infants and children. Neonates are at highest risk of severe or disseminated infection, especi...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - August 20, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Cytolytic Vaginosis: a Critical Appraisal of a Controversial Condition
AbstractPurpose of ReviewCytolytic vaginosis is a controversial condition that some clinicians have traditionally included as a potential cause of vulvovaginal symptoms despite the lack of scientific evidence.Recent FindingsRecent articles have focused on the evaluation of patients once they carry the diagnosis of cytolytic vaginosis, rather than on diagnostic criteria.SummaryOur review revealed inadequate criteria for excluding other causes of vulvovaginal symptoms, especially VVC, when diagnosing women with cytolytic vaginosis. Treatment recommendations have remained stagnant with no single case report or case series wit...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - August 11, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Clinical Utility of Lefamulin: If Not Now, When?
AbstractPurpose of ReviewThe looming threat of antimicrobial resistance requires robust stewardship and new developments in infectious diseases pharmacotherapy. This review discusses the pertinent spectrum and clinical data of lefamulin (Xenleta ®), with a focus on potential real-world use.Recent FindingsLefamulin is a novel pleuromutilin antibiotic that obtained Food and Drug Administration labeling for community-acquired bacterial pneumonia (CABP) in 2019. Lefamulin is available in both intravenous and oral formulations, and it inhibits bacterial protein synthesis inhibition through interactive binding to unique sites o...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - July 8, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Desquamative Inflammatory Vaginitis as an Extraintestinal Manifestation of Crohn ’s Disease
AbstractPurpose of ReviewTo report the association between desquamative inflammatory vaginitis and Crohn ’s disease in 4 women.Recent FindingsExtraintestinal manifestations of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are a result of a complex interplay of multiple factors and these may or may not follow an independent course. Vulvar sequelae of Crohn ’s disease have been described in the literature, but the impact of IBD on vaginal health is not well known.SummaryIn all 4 patients, Crohn ’s disease diagnosis was known to the patients, all of whom were managed by experienced gastroenterologists. However, the association of va...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - July 2, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
Antimicrobial Stewardship at the Core of COVID-19 Response Efforts: Implications for Sustaining and Building Programs
We describe traditional antimicrobial stewardship program (ASP) activities with a discussion of how these activities can be refocused in the setting of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, we discuss possible adverse consequences of ASP attention diversion on COVID-19 response efforts and overall implications for future pandemic planning. We also discuss ASP in collaboration with other groups within health systems and how COVID-19 may affect these relationships long term. Despite the paucity of literature on Antimicrobial Stewardship and COVID-19, the potential contributions of ASPs during a pandemic are numerous. ASPs can...
Source: Current Infectious Disease Reports - July 2, 2020 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research
