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Background: The rate and severity of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections within the same nation may vary from one year to another. Patients and Methods: The “Osservatorio VRS” study collected epidemiological data on RSV infection among Italian children aged ≤ 4 years referred to emergency departments of 14 centers, for suspected lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) in two consecutive...
Brain abscess is a rare complication of staphylococcal bacteremia in infants. Here we present a case of a premature infant who developed multiple brain abscesses 12 weeks following an episode of inadequately treated Staphylococcus aureus sepsis. The abscess developed in the absence of trauma, prior surgery, cyanotic heart disease, or immune defect. The initial staphylococcal isolate exhibited identical...
Whipple’s disease is a rare systemic disorder classically presenting with weight loss, arthralgias, and diarrhea, which was first described in 1907. The causative bacterium Tropheryma whipplei, is a fastidious organism not growing on conventional media. Before the introduction of polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods, the diagnostic gold standard was histological detection of diastase-resistant...
Acute hepatitis C often progresses to chronic infection (70%). In this clinical study, we evaluated if early treatment with peginterferon alfa-2b can prevent acute hepatitis C from developing into a chronic disease. Six patients with acute hepatitis C, based on a well-documented hepatitis C virus (HCV) seroconversion with high alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels (> 10 x ULN) and persistent...
Malaria remains the most important parasitic disease worldwide. Falciparum malaria is a medical emergency and requires immediate diagnosis and treatment. Cerebral malaria is a rapidly progressive, potentially fatal complication of Plasmodium falciparum infection. This case, including post-mortem observations, histology, and laboratory diagnosis, emphasizes the necessity of appropriate advice regarding...
Background: Many intravenous opiate users are infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) but few are treated. Although this complies with various guidelines, virtually no published evidence supports such a recommendation. Patients and Methods: In a multicenter study, HCV-infected patients in opiate maintenance treatment programs received interferon plus high- or low-dose ribavirin (1,000/1,200...
This review summarizes the clinically relevant aspects of nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus. The epidemiology, associated risk, and the effects of eradication are discussed. The main conclusions are that nasal carriage of S. aureus is a well-defined risk factor for subsequent infection in nearly all categories of hospitalized patients that have been studied. However, studies that have...
After the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in 1995 it took 3 years to recognize the new syndrome of lipodystrophy as a long-term complication of HAART [1]. It was found to be a direct toxic consequence of the various drugs used in combination regimens. Another 2 years later, an additional syndrome was described in patients who recently initiated HAART—the immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) [2–4]. Although already recognized in the pre-HIV era in patients with treatment for tuberculosis [5, 6) and leprosy [7), it became substantially more frequent in HIV-infected patients on HAART. The term IRIS describes a collection of different inflammatory disorders which are associated with paradoxical deterioration of various preexisting infectious processes following commencement of HAART in HIV-infected patients. These preexisting infections in individuals with IRIS may have been previously diagnosed and treated or may have been symptomless and later revealed by the patient’s improved capacity to mount an inflammatory response....
Background: Acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis (AECB) are associated with a variety of viral and bacterial infectious agents, some of which are potentially preventable by immunization. Bordetella pertussis, which causes whooping cough, has not been studied in this context. We aimed to assess the role of Bordetella infections in patients with AECB. Patients and Methods: Patients with...
Background: A cross-sectional investigation was carried out between 2000 and 2002 to assess the prevalence of hepatitis C virus infection (HCV) in Naples, southern Italy. Patients and Methods: Five groups of individuals were investigated, two at low risk and three at high risk for HCV infection. Blood sample sera were collected among 5,391 individuals (4,059 men and 1,332 women): 1,972 general...
Antibiotic activity against common respiratory pathogens can be affected by the pH of the medium (in vitro) or the bodily fluid (in vivo) in which bacteria are present. The ionized fraction of an antibiotic is not able to efficiently penetrate bacterial or mammalian membranes, reducing the quantity of molecules able to exert their antibacterial effect resulting in elevated MIC values This study shows...
A review of published data on the in vitro, ex vivo, in vivo and clinical effects of fluoroquinolones on the synthesis of cytokines is provided. Fluoroquinolones (FQs) were found to affect both cellular and humoral immunity. In general, FQs exert their modulating effects only when used together with a co-stimulant. The in vitro studies generated heterogeneous data because of inhomogeneous effects...
Introduction: As the number of nosocomial methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in German intensive care units increases, the problem of MRSA infection as such is becoming ever more serious. The aim of this study was to investigate whether mortality rates from nosocomial MRSA pneumonia and primary bloodstream infections (BSI) differ significantly from those of nosocomial...
Fluoroquinolones are known to penetrate well into the infectious foci such as lung mucosa, epithelial lining fluid and alveolar macrophages achieving higher target site concentrations than the corresponding serum levels. In order to intergrate the in vitro antibacterial activity and pharmacokinetics of moxifloxacin and levofloxacin, their bactericidal efficacy was assessed by simulating human serum...
Background: We wanted to analyze the clinical characteristics and therapeutic outcomes of adult meningitis caused by coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS). Patients and Methods: Over a period of 5 years (January 1999 to December 2003), 127 cases were identified as having adult culture-proven bacterial meningitis caused by a single pathogen. Of them, 14 cases...
Background: Despite intensive research, the etiology of acute anterior uveitis (AAU) remains poorly defined. Infection with gram-negative bacteria such as Yersinia, Salmonella, Shigella, and Chlamydia have already been suggested as a possible trigger event for AAU. Helicobacter pylori is also a gram-negative bacterium, shares the lipopolysaccharides, but did not attract the attention...
Background: In Europe certain hantaviruses are known to cause hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome of different severity. The objective of the present investigation was to study the presence of hantavirus infections in Lithuania. Material and Methods: Two different serum panels from cancer patients (n = 438) and blood donors (n = 299) from Lithuania were tested by monoclonal antibody capture...
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