Fulminant hepatitis: a clinical review of 11 years

24 cases of fulminant hepatitis (FH) hospitalized in the Clínica de Doenças Infecciosas e Parasitárias do Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo during the period from January 1976 to December 1986 were reviewed from their clinical, epidemiological and laboratorial aspects. 88% of the patients died; 20 patients (83%) presented hemorrhages and, of these, 19 died. Bacterial infections occurred in 14 patients (58%) all of whom died. Ascitis was noted in 3 cases; cerebral edema was present in 16 cases. Maximal ALT levels for each patient during hospitalization ranged widely from 81 to 4,460 UI/l. Thirteen patients presented high creatinine levels (54%). Prothrombin time activity ranged from 2.1% to 67%. Fever was present in 20 cases (83%). Encephalopathy occurred within the first 2 weeks of illness in 72% of the cases. In 7 cases other illnesses were present. The etiology could not be determined in 13 cases. In 3 cases it was due to yellow fever and 6 cases were caused by viruses other than yellow fever. In one case the cause was drug usage and in another case, possibly alcohol. The authors believe that the clinical definition of FH requires further discussion before it is established. In this study FH is a young person's disease. The mortality found was similar to that by other authors. Factors that contributed to death were: hemorrhages and bacterial infection. Factors that worsened the prognosis of hepatitis were: associated illnesses and surgical procedure. The levels of ALT during hospitalization did not correlate well with the severity of the hepatitis. The authors believe that yellow fever should be considered a cause of FH where the clinical picture meets the criteria for such, although its mechanisms of encephalopathy remain obscure. The clinical details of the 3 cases of yellow fever are presented.Vinte e quatro casos de hepatite fulminante (HF), internados na Clínica de Doenças Infecciosas e Parasitárias do Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo durante o período de janeiro de 1976 a dezembro de 1986, foram revistos para a obtenção de dados clínicos, epidemiológicos e laboratoriais. 88% dos pacientes morreram. Vinte (83%) dos pacientes apresentaram hemorragias, dentre os quais 19 morreram (95%). Infecções bacterianas secundárias ocorreram em 14 pacientes (58%) todos os quais faleceram. Ascite foi notada em 3 casos e edema cerebral em 16 casos. Os valores máximos de ALT obtidos para cada paciente durante a internação variaram de 81 a 4.460 UI/l. Treze pacientes tiveram elevação de creatinina (54%). A atividade do tempo de protrombina variou de 2,1% a 67%. A febre esteve presente em 20 casos (83%). A encefalopatia surgiu durante as 2 primeiras semanas de doenças em 72% dos casos. Em 7 casos havia doenças associadas à hepatite. A etiologia não pode ser determinada em 13 casos; 3 casos foram por febre amarela; e 6 casos por outros vírus. Em 1 caso a causa foi drogas e em um caso, possivelmente, foi álcool. Os autores acreditam que a definição de HF merece discussão antes de ser totalmente aceita. Neste estudo, a HF foi uma doença que acometeu principalmente jovens. A letalidade encontrada foi semelhante a de outros estudos. Fatores que contribuíram para o óbito foram hemorragias e infecções bacterianas secundárias. Fatores de piora do prognóstico da hepatite foram a presença de outras doenças associadas e de procedimento cirúrgico. Os níveis de ALT durante a internação não refletiram a gravidade da hepatite. Os autores acreditam que a febre amarela deve ser considerada um agente etiológico de HF quando o seu quadro clínico seja compatível com tal, embora os mecanismos fisiopatológicos da encefalopatia sejam ainda obscuros. Os dados clínicos dos 3 casos de febre amarela são apresentados à parte

Indicadores de desempenho sobre uso de antibioticoprofilaxia cirúrgica: construção e validação

The study aims to contribute to hospital infection control practices by the development and validation of performance indicators to evaluate the use of surgical antibiotic prophylaxis. Using a methodology for drawing up measures to evaluate health practices, one basic and five secondary indicators were constructed and submitted to content validation through attributes of operational manual, representativeness and applicability by technical consensus of specialists. All indicators got consensus, although one attribute of applicability of the basic indicator and the secondary indicators were questioned by the specialists. The suggestions of the experts, however, allowed adjustments and therefore validation. Given that different types of evaluation of clinical practices have been built, but not always substantiated and validated, it is believed that methods of construction and validation like in this study are its greatest contribution.O estudo pretende contribuir com práticas de controle de infecção hospitalar, pela elaboração e validação de indicadores de avaliação de desempenho do uso de antibioticoprofilaxia cirúrgica. Por meio de metodologia de elaboração de medidas de avaliação em saúde, foram construídos um indicador básico e cinco secundários, submetidos à validação de construto operacional, representatividade e aplicabilidade, por meio de técnica de consenso de especialistas. Todos os indicadores obtiveram consenso nos atributos dos construtos operacionais e de representatividade. Quanto à aplicabilidade, o indicador básico não obteve consenso somente para o atributo de acessibilidade, e os secundários para o de contextualização. As sugestões dos especialistas, contudo, permitiram ajustes e, portanto, validação. Tendo em vista que diversos tipos de avaliação de práticas assistenciais têm sido construídos,  embora nem sempre sejam fundamentados e validados, acreditase que os modos de construção e validação utilizados neste estudo constituem a sua maior contribuição

Guidelines on Management of Human Infection with the Novel Virus Influenza A (H1N1) – A Report from the Hospital das Clínicas of the University of São Paulo

The pandemic novel influenza A (H1N1) infection was considered widespread in Brazil on July, 2009. Since then, 9.249 cases were confirmed in Brazil, most of them concentrated in São Paulo. The Hospital das Clínicas of the University of São Paulo is a reference center for H1N1 cases in São Paulo. The purpose of this review is to analyze the evidence concerning diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of novel influenza A (H1N1) infection. In addition, we propose guidelines for the management of this pandemic emphasizing Hospital das Clínicas “bundles” for the control of the pandemic novel influenza A (H1N1)

Epidemiology of Human Infection with the Novel Virus Influenza A (H1H1) in the Hospital das Clínicas, São Paulo, Brazil – June–September 2009

The pandemic novel influenza A (H1N1) infection was considered widespread in Brazil on July 16, 2009. Since then, 46,810 cases of acute respiratory syndrome have been reported in Brazil, most of them concentrated in São Paulo. Through September 16, we have confirmed 9,249 cases of novel influenza A H1N1in Brazil, including 699 deaths. The mortality rate observed in Brazil is 0.47/100,000 inhabitants and varies according to region. In this period, São Paulo registered 3733 cases (40.3% of the total) of novel influenza A (H1N1) infection and 327 deaths, reflecting a mortality rate of 0.79/100,000 inhabitants

Comparison of methods to detect the in vitro activity of silver nanoparticles (AgNP) against multidrug resistant bacteria

Abstract\ud \ud Background\ud Multidrug resistant microorganisms are a growing challenge and new substances that can be useful to treat infections due to these microorganisms are needed. Silver nanoparticle may be a future option \ud for treatment of these infections, however, the methods described in vitro to evaluate the inhibitory effect are controversial.\ud \ud \ud Results\ud This study evaluated the in vitro activity of silver nanoparticles against 36 susceptible and 54 multidrug resistant Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria from clinical sources. The multidrug resistant bacteria were oxacilin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus spp., carbapenem- and polymyxin B-resistant A. baumannii, carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa and carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae. We analyzed silver nanoparticles stabilized with citrate, chitosan and polyvinyl alcohol and commercial silver nanoparticle. Silver sulfadiazine and silver nitrate were used as control. Different methods were used: agar diffusion, minimum inhibitory concentration, minimum bactericidal concentration and time-kill. The activity of AgNPs using diffusion in solid media and the MIC methods showed similar effect against MDR and antimicrobial-susceptible isolates, with a higher effect against Gram-negative isolates. The better results were achieved with citrate and chitosan silver nanoparticle, both with MIC90 of 6.75 μg mL−1, which can be due the lower stability of these particles and, consequently, release of Ag+ ions as revealed by X-ray diffraction (XRD). The bactericidal effect was higher against antimicrobial-susceptible bacteria.\ud \ud \ud Conclusion\ud It seems that agar diffusion method can be used as screening test, minimum inhibitory concentration/minimum bactericidal concentration and time kill showed to be useful methods. The activity of commercial silver nanoparticle and silver controls did not exceed the activity of the citrate and chitosan silver nanoparticles. The in vitro inhibitory effect was stronger against Gram-negative than Gram-positive, and similar against\ud multidrug resistant and susceptible bacteria, with best result achieved using citrate and chitosan silver nanoparticles. The bactericidal effect of silver nanoparticle may, in the future, be translated into important therapeutic and clinical options, especially considering the shortage of new antimicrobials against the emerging antimicrobial resistant microorganisms, in particular against Gram-negative bacteria.Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) awarded to Nanobiotec Project number1290/2009

Nursing Workload as a Risk Factor for Healthcare Associated Infections in ICU: A Prospective Study

Introduction: Nurse understaffing is frequently hypothesized as a potential risk factor for healthcare-associated infections (HAI). This study aimed to evaluate the role of nursing workload in the occurrence of HAI, using Nursing Activities Score (NAS). Methods: This prospective cohort study enrolled all patients admitted to 3 Medical ICUs and one step-down unit during 3 months (2009). Patients were followed-up until HAI, discharge or death. Information was obtained from direct daily observation of medical and nursing rounds, chart review and monitoring of laboratory system. Nursing workload was determined using NAS. Non-compliance to the nurses' patient care plans (NPC) was identified. Demographic data, clinical severity, invasive procedures, hospital interventions, and the occurrence of other adverse events were also recorded. Patients who developed HAI were compared with those who did not. Results: 195 patients were included and 43 (22%) developed HAI: 16 pneumonia, 12 urinary-tract, 8 bloodstream, 2 surgical site, 2 other respiratory infections and 3 other. Average NAS and average proportion of non compliance with NPC were significantly higher in HAI patients. They were also more likely to suffer other adverse events. Only excessive nursing workload (OR: 11.41; p: 0.019) and severity of patient's clinical condition (OR: 1.13; p: 0.015) remained as risk factors to HAI. Conclusions: Excessive nursing workload was the main risk factor for HAI, when evaluated together with other invasive devices except mechanical ventilation. To our knowledge, this study is the first to evaluate prospectively the nursing workload as a potential risk factor for HAI, using NAS.Foundation for Research of the State of Sao Paulo (FAPESP- Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo) [2008/00955-2