[Articles] The global burden of tuberculosis: results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015
Despite a concerted global effort to reduce the burden of tuberculosis, it still causes a large disease burden globally. Strengthening of health systems for early detection of tuberculosis and improvement of the quality of tuberculosis care, including prompt and accurate diagnosis, early initiation of treatment, and regular follow-up, are priorities. Countries with higher than expected tuberculosis rates for their level of sociodemographic development should investigate the reasons for lagging behind and take remedial action. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - December 6, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: GBD Tuberculosis Collaborators Tags: Articles Source Type: research
[Comment] Tuberculosis eradication: renewed commitment and global investment required
Despite centuries of scientific endeavour and social struggle, tuberculosis continues to claim more than 1 ·6 million lives each year.1 Tuberculosis has killed and continues to kill more people than any other infectious disease. In The Lancet Infectious Diseases, the GBD Tuberculosis Collaborators2 estimate that 10·2 million (95% uncertainty interval [95% UI] 9·2 million to 11·5 million) individuals developed tuberculosis in 2015. While this estimate represents a modest decline since peaking in the early years of this century, the continued high burden, along with a woefully inadequate response to drug-resistant tuberc...
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - December 6, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Helen Cox, Mark P Nicol Tags: Comment Source Type: research
[Articles] HIV-1 drug resistance before initiation or re-initiation of first-line antiretroviral therapy in low-income and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-regression analysis
Pretreatment drug resistance is increasing at substantial rate in LMICs, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2016, the prevalence of pretreatment NNRTI resistance was near WHO's 10% threshold for changing first-line ART in southern and eastern Africa and Latin America, underscoring the need for routine national HIV drug-resistance surveillance and review of national policies for first-line ART regimen composition. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 30, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Ravindra K Gupta, John Gregson, Neil Parkin, Hiwot Haile-Selassie, Amilcar Tanuri, Liliana Andrade Forero, Pontiano Kaleebu, Christine Watera, Avelin Aghokeng, Nicholus Mutenda, Janet Dzangare, San Hone, Zaw Zaw Hang, Judith Garcia, Zully Garcia, Paola Ma Tags: Articles Source Type: research
[Comment] Time to overcome pretreatment HIV drug resistance
Antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage among people living with HIV reached 53% worldwide in 2016, representing 21 million people on treatment.1 As the number of people accessing ART increases, the prevalence of pretreatment drug resistance has increased in several low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs).2 A recent WHO report showed that the prevalence of pretreatment resistance to non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) surpassed 10% in six of 11 countries surveyed.3 Is this a threat for the UNAIDS target of eliminating HIV as a concern for public health by 2030? (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 30, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Sabine Yerly, Alexandra Calmy Tags: Comment Source Type: research
[Articles] Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra for detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and rifampicin resistance: a prospective multicentre diagnostic accuracy study
For tuberculosis case detection, sensitivity of Xpert Ultra was superior to that of Xpert in patients with paucibacillary disease and in patients with HIV. However, this increase in sensitivity came at the expense of a decrease in specificity. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 30, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Susan E Dorman, Samuel G Schumacher, David Alland, Pamela Nabeta, Derek T Armstrong, Bonnie King, Sandra L Hall, Soumitesh Chakravorty, Daniela M Cirillo, Nestani Tukvadze, Nino Bablishvili, Wendy Stevens, Lesley Scott, Camilla Rodrigues, Mubin I Kazi, Mo Tags: Articles Source Type: research
[Comment] Performance of Xpert MTB/RIF Ultra: a matter of dead or alive
In our opinion, the implementation of the Xpert MTB/RIF assay (Cepheid, Sunnyvale, CA, USA) since 2010 has revolutionised molecular diagnosis of (multidrug-resistant) tuberculosis. Xpert combines early diagnosis of tuberculosis with direct detection of rifampicin resistance, but the limitations of the assay are its suboptimal sensitivity and high rate of false positivity in low-prevalence settings. To overcome these limitations, the assay was re-engineered to increase diagnostic sensitivity and improve specificity in the detection of rifampicin resistance. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 30, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Sandra M Arend, Dick van Soolingen Tags: Comment Source Type: research
[Articles] Early transmissible ampicillin resistance in zoonotic Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium in the late 1950s: a retrospective, whole-genome sequencing study
The association between antibiotic use and selection of resistance determinants is not as direct as often presumed. Our results suggest that the non-clinical use of narrow-spectrum penicillins (eg, benzylpenicillin) might have favoured the diffusion of plasmids carrying the blaTEM-1 gene in S enterica serotype Typhimurium in the late 1950s. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 29, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Alicia Tran-Dien, Simon Le Hello, Christiane Bouchier, Fran çois-Xavier Weill Tags: Articles Source Type: research
[Corrections] Corrections
Begeman L, GeurtsvanKessel C, Finke S, et al. Comparative pathogenesis of rabies in bats and carnivores, and implications for spillover to humans. Lancet Infect Dis 2017; published online Oct 31. http://dx.doi.org/S1473-3099(17)30574-1. The affiliation for L Begeman, C GeurtsvanKessel, Prof M Koopmans, and Prof T Kuiken should have been “Department of Viroscience, Postgraduate School Molecular Medicine, Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, Netherlands”. This correction has been made to the online version as of Nov 29, 2017 and will be made to the printed Review. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 29, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Tags: Corrections Source Type: research
[Comment] Why the antibiotic resistance crisis requires a One Health approach
The alarming levels of antibiotic resistance among bacterial pathogens is one of the largest health threats of this century.1 Although originally considered a problem of human health, containment of antimicrobial resistance requires a multisectorial approach involving experts in human, animal, and environmental health. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 29, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Sandra Van Puyvelde, Stijn Deborggraeve, Jan Jacobs Tags: Comment Source Type: research
[Articles] Resurgence of scarlet fever in England, 2014 –16: a population-based surveillance study
England is experiencing an unprecedented rise in scarlet fever with the highest incidence for nearly 50 years. Reasons for this escalation are unclear and identifying these remains a public health priority. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 27, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Theresa Lamagni, Rebecca Guy, Meera Chand, Katherine L Henderson, Victoria Chalker, James Lewis, Vanessa Saliba, Alex J Elliot, Gillian E Smith, Stephen Rushton, Elizabeth A Sheridan, Mary Ramsay, Alan P Johnson Tags: Articles Source Type: research
[Comment] Scarlet fever makes a comeback
Epidemic scarlet fever or scarlatina caused by Streptococcus pyogenes (group A streptococcus) resulted in significant mortality and morbidity in the 19th and early 20th centuries, then receded as a major public health problem before the introduction of widespread antibiotic use.1 –3 Although sporadic cases of scarlet fever continue to occur, these episodes are not associated with the high mortality that has been previously documented during epidemics. Characteristic symptoms of scarlet fever that aid in diagnosis include a finely papular erythematous red rash, so-called st rawberry tongue, and exudative pharyngitis. (Sou...
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 27, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Mark J Walker, Stephan Brouwer Tags: Comment Source Type: research
[Corrections] Corrections
Hermans LE, Moorhouse M, Carmona S, et al. Effect of HIV-1 low-level viraemia during antiretroviral therapy on treatment outcomes in WHO-guided South African treatment programmes: a multicentre cohort study. Lancet Infect Dis 2017; published online Nov 17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(17)30681-3 —In figure 3, part D, the line showing virological suppression below 50 copies per mL was omitted. The figure has been corrected. This correction has been made to the online version as of Nov 24, 2017. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 24, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Tags: Corrections Source Type: research
[Clinical Picture] A travelling camper with a spiking fever, headache, myalgia, hepatitis, and intracellular inclusions
A previously healthy 60-year-old Norwegian man presented to the emergency department of Stavanger University Hospital in late May 2016 with a 10-day history of spiking fever, headache, and myalgia. The patient was in good general condition, with normal vital signs, but he developed fever spikes within a few hours of admission. Physical examination was unremarkable. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 23, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Jens Vikse, Jan Klos, Aase Berg Tags: Clinical Picture Source Type: research
[Clinical Picture] Tuberculosis of the tonsil simulating a cancer
A 36-year-old woman presented with a 1-month history of sore throat and progressive dysphagia. She had no history of any serious illness, chronic cough, or other chest symptoms. She had been taking various courses of antibiotics, including amoxicillin and a combination of amoxicillin plus clavulanic acid, and paracetamol for sore throat without any relief. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 23, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Moncef Sellami, Malek Mnejja, Slim Charfi, Abdelmonem Ghorbel Tags: Clinical Picture Source Type: research
[Media Watch] Anti-vaxxers are antisocial
Over the years, academics have used all sorts of techniques during their shows at the Cabaret of Dangerous Ideas (CODI) —from music and props to experiments involving audience members. Yet, Dr Clare Taylor, Senior Lecturer in Medical Microbiology at Edinburgh Napier University, UK, is the first scientist I have seen who has started her show by tweeting. Taylor took to Twitter at the beginning of “Anti-vaxxers are antisocial” on Aug 12, 2017, to ask the US President, Donald Trump, “@realDonaldTrump a quick question, have your kids been vaccinated? @CODIfringe”. (Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases)
Source: The Lancet Infectious Diseases - November 23, 2017 Category: Infectious Diseases Authors: Peter Ranscombe Tags: Media Watch Source Type: research
