Incidence and clinical outcomes of nosocomial infections in patients presenting with STEMI complicated by cardiogenic shock in the United States

OBJECTIVES: This study addresses the incidence, trends, and impact of nosocomial infections (NI) on the outcomes of patients admitted with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and cardiogenic shock (STEMI-CS) using the United States National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database. METHODS: We analyzed data from 105,184 STEMI-CS patients using the NIS database from the years 2005-2014. NI was defined as infections of more than or equal to three days, comprising of central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI), urinary tract infection (UTI), hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP), Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), bacteremia, and skin related infections. Outcomes of the impact of NI on STEMI-CS included in-hospital mortality, length of hospital stay (LOS) and costs. Significant associations of NI in patients admitted with STEMI-CS were also identified. RESULTS: Overall, 19.1% (20,137) of patients admitted with STEMI-CS developed NI. Trends of NI have decreased from 2005-2014. The most common NI were UTI (9.2%), followed by HAP (6.8%), CLABSI (1.5%), bacteremia (1.5%), skin related infections (1.5%), and CDI (1.3%). The strongest association of developing a NI was increasing LOS (7-9 days; OR: 1.99; 95% CI: 1.75-2.26; \u3e9 days; OR: 4.51; 95% CI: 4.04-5.04 compared to 4-6 days as reference). Increased mortality risk among patients with NI was significant, especially those with sepsis-associated NI compared to those without sepsis (OR: 2.95; 95% CI: 2.72-3.20). Patients with NI were found to be associated with significantly longer LOS and higher costs, irrespective of percutaneous mechanical circulatory support placement. CONCLUSIONS: NI were common among patients with STEMI-CS. Those who developed NI were at a greater risk of in-hospital mortality, increased LOS and costs

Traumatic Pulmonary Pseudocyst Mimicking a Congenital Cystic Lung Disease

Traumatic pulmonary pseudocyst (TPP) is a rare entity that occurs following a trauma to the chest. It usually presents as multiple cystic lesions on thoracic imaging. It is treated conservatively and tends to completely resolve after few months. In the absence of striking signs of trauma such as rib fractures, TPP can be mistaken for other cystic lung diseases. We present a case of TPP in a 17-year-old male who was seen for mild hemoptysis after falling off a cliff. The extent of his right lower lobe cystic lesions along with the lack of major signs of trauma led to an incorrect diagnosis of congenital pulmonary airway malformation. The patient was considered for lobectomy, which he refused. Imaging of the chest repeated one and three years later showed complete resolution of the lesions

Migrating gossypiboma mimicking aspergilloma twenty years after mediastinal surgery

A gossypiboma refers to a surgical sponge or gauze accidentally retained inside a patient during a procedure. It is more commonly encountered after abdominal surgeries. When seen in the thorax, it is usually located within the pleural cavity. We report a case of a 42-year old woman who was found to have a gossypiboma mimicking a simple aspergilloma twenty years after a left thoracotomy. The surgical gauze identified on a CT-scan of her chest appears to have migrated into her lung airways

Dysbiosis of the intestinal fungal microbiota increases lung resident group 2 innate lymphoid cells and is associated with enhanced asthma severity in mice and humans

Abstract Background The gut-lung axis is the concept that alterations of gut microbiota communities can influence immune function in the lungs. While studies have explored the relationship between intestinal bacterial dysbiosis and asthma development, less is understood about the impact of commensal intestinal fungi on asthma severity and control and underlying mechanisms by which this occurs. Methods Wild-type mice were treated with Cefoperazone to deplete gut bacteria and administered Candida albicans or water through gavage. Mice were then sensitized to house dust mite (HDM) and their lungs were analyzed for changes in immune response. Humans with asthma were recruited and stool samples were analyzed for Candida abundance and associations with asthma severity and control. Results Mice with intestinal Candida dysbiosis had enhanced Th2 response after airway sensitization with HDM, manifesting with greater total white cell and eosinophil counts in the airway, and total IgE concentrations in the serum. Group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2) were more abundant in the lungs of mice with Candida gut dysbiosis, even when not sensitized to HDM, suggesting that ILC2 may be important mediators of the enhanced Th2 response. These effects occurred with no detectable increased Candida in the lung by culture or rtPCR suggesting gut-lung axis interactions were responsible. In humans with asthma, enhanced intestinal Candida burden was associated with the risk of severe asthma exacerbation in the past year, independent of systemic antibiotic and glucocorticoid use. Conclusions Candida gut dysbiosis may worsen asthma control and enhance allergic airway inflammation, potentially mediated by ILC2. Further studies are necessary to examine whether microbial dysbiosis can drive difficult-to-control asthma in humans and to better understand the underlying mechanisms

Non-O1, non-O139 Vibrio cholerae bacteremia in an urban academic medical center in the United States

Non-O1, non-O139 Vibrio cholerae (NOVC) are genetically diverse strains that are generally non-pathogenic in healthy hosts. In immunocompromised patients or those with liver disease, NOVC have been shown to cause gastroenteritis, wound infections or sepsis and are often associated with high mortality rates. We report a case of a patient with liver cirrhosis and chronic venous insufficiency who was found to have NOVC bacteremia. The patient had recently visited Florida, USA but had no seafood consumption or exposure to aquatic environments. The patient was managed with antimicrobials, with a favorable outcome

International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortiu (INICC) report, data summary of 43 countries for 2007-2012. Device-associated module

We report the results of an International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium (INICC) surveillance study from January 2007-December 2012 in 503 intensive care units (ICUs) in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe. During the 6-year study using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) U.S. National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) definitions for device-associated health care–associated infection (DA-HAI), we collected prospective data from 605,310 patients hospitalized in the INICC's ICUs for an aggregate of 3,338,396 days. Although device utilization in the INICC's ICUs was similar to that reported from ICUs in the U.S. in the CDC's NHSN, rates of device-associated nosocomial infection were higher in the ICUs of the INICC hospitals: the pooled rate of central line–associated bloodstream infection in the INICC's ICUs, 4.9 per 1,000 central line days, is nearly 5-fold higher than the 0.9 per 1,000 central line days reported from comparable U.S. ICUs. The overall rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia was also higher (16.8 vs 1.1 per 1,000 ventilator days) as was the rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (5.5 vs 1.3 per 1,000 catheter days). Frequencies of resistance of Pseudomonas isolates to amikacin (42.8% vs 10%) and imipenem (42.4% vs 26.1%) and Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates to ceftazidime (71.2% vs 28.8%) and imipenem (19.6% vs 12.8%) were also higher in the INICC's ICUs compared with the ICUs of the CDC's NHSN