3,371 research outputs found

    Anterior Cervical Infection: Presentation and Incidence of an Uncommon Postoperative Complication.

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    STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective multi-institutional case series. OBJECTIVE: The anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) affords the surgeon the flexibility to treat a variety of cervical pathologies, with the majority being for degenerative and traumatic indications. Limited data in the literature describe the presentation and true incidence of postoperative surgical site infections. METHODS: A retrospective multicenter case series study was conducted involving 21 high-volume surgical centers from the AOSpine North America Clinical Research Network, selected for their excellence in spine care and clinical research infrastructure and experience. Medical records for 17 625 patients who received cervical spine surgery (levels from C2 to C7) between January 1, 2005, and December 31, 2011, inclusive, were reviewed to identify the occurrence of 21 predefined treatment complications. Patients who underwent an ACDF were identified in the database and reviewed for the occurrence of postoperative anterior cervical infections. RESULTS: A total of 8887 patients were identified from a retrospective database analysis of 21 centers providing data for postoperative anterior cervical infections (17/21, 81% response rate). A total of 6 postoperative infections after ACDF were identified for a mean rate of 0.07% (range 0% to 0.39%). The mean age of patients identified was 57.5 (SD = 11.6, 66.7% female). The mean body mass index was 22.02. Of the total infections, half were smokers (n = 3). Two patients presented with myelopathy, and 3 patients presented with radiculopathic-type complaints. The mean length of stay was 4.7 days. All patients were treated aggressively with surgery for management of this complication, with improvement in all patients. There were no mortalities. CONCLUSION: The incidence of postoperative infection in ACDF is exceedingly low. The management has historically been urgent irrigation and debridement of the surgical site. However, due to the rarity of this occurrence, guidance for management is limited to retrospective series

    Implementation of hand hygiene in health-care facilities: results from the WHO Hand Hygiene Self-Assessment Framework global survey 2019

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    Background Hand hygiene is at the core of effective infection prevention and control (IPC) programmes. 10 years after the development of the WHO Multimodal Hand Hygiene Improvement Strategy, we aimed to ascertain the level of hand hygiene implementation and its drivers in health-care facilities through a global WHO survey. Methods From Jan 16 to Dec 31, 2019, IPC professionals were invited through email and campaigns to complete the online Hand Hygiene Self-Assessment Framework (HHSAF). A geospatial clustering algorithm selected unique health-care facilities responses and post-stratification weighting was applied to improve representativeness. Weighted median HHSAF scores and IQR were reported. Drivers of the HHSAF score were determined through a generalised estimation equation. Findings 3206 unique responses from 90 countries (46% WHO Member States) were included. The HHSAF score indicated an intermediate hand hygiene implementation level (350 points, IQR 248–430), which was positively associated with country income level and health-care facility funding structure. System Change had the highest score (85 points, IQR 55–100), whereby alcohol-based hand rub at the point of care has become standard practice in many health-care facilities, especially in high-income countries. Institutional Safety Climate had the lowest score (55 points, IQR 35–75). From 2015 to 2019, the median HHSAF score in health-care facilities participating in both HHSAF surveys (n=190) stagnated. Interpretation Most health-care facilities had an intermediate level of hand hygiene implementation or higher, for which health-care facility funding and country income level were important drivers. Availability of resources, leadership, and organisational support are key elements to further improve quality of care and provide access to safe care for all.Peer Reviewe

    Closed-loop insulin delivery in inpatients with type 2 diabetes: a randomised, parallel-group trial.

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    BACKGROUND: We assessed whether fully closed-loop insulin delivery (the so-called artificial pancreas) is safe and effective compared with standard subcutaneous insulin therapy in patients with type 2 diabetes in the general ward. METHODS: For this single-centre, open-label, parallel-group, randomised controlled trial, we enrolled patients aged 18 years or older with type 2 diabetes who were receiving insulin therapy. Patients were recruited from general wards at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, UK. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) by a computer-generated minimisation method to receive closed-loop insulin delivery (using a model-predictive control algorithm to direct subcutaneous delivery of rapid-acting insulin analogue without meal-time insulin boluses) or conventional subcutaneous insulin delivery according to local clinical guidelines. The primary outcome was time spent in the target glucose concentration range of 5·6-10·0 mmol/L during the 72 h study period. Analyses were by intention to treat. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01774565. FINDINGS: Between Feb 20, 2015, and March 24, 2016, we enrolled 40 participants, of whom 20 were randomly assigned to the closed-loop intervention group and 20 to the control group. The proportion of time spent in the target glucose range was 59·8% (SD 18·7) in the closed-loop group and 38·1% (16·7) in the control group (difference 21·8% [95% CI 10·4-33·1]; p=0·0004). No episodes of severe hypoglycaemia or hyperglycaemia with ketonaemia occurred in either group. One adverse event unrelated to study devices occurred during the study (gastrointestinal bleed). INTERPRETATION: Closed-loop insulin delivery without meal-time boluses is effective and safe in insulin-treated adults with type 2 diabetes in the general ward. FUNDING: Diabetes UK; European Foundation for the Study of Diabetes; JDRF; National Institute for Health Research Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre; Wellcome Trust.This study was supported by Diabetes UK (#14/0004878) and the European Foundation for the Study of Diabetes. Additional support for research on the artificial pancreas was received from the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, National Institute for Health Research Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre, and Wellcome Strategic Award (100574/Z/12/Z).This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Elsevier via https://doi.org/10.1016/S2213-8587(16)30280-

    Retrograde optogenetic characterization of the pontospinal module of the locus coeruleus with a canine adenoviral vector

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    AbstractNoradrenergic neurons of the brainstem extend projections throughout the neuraxis to modulate a wide range of processes including attention, arousal, autonomic control and sensory processing. A spinal projection from the locus coeruleus (LC) is thought to regulate nociceptive processing. To characterize and selectively manipulate the pontospinal noradrenergic neurons in rats, we implemented a retrograde targeting strategy using a canine adenoviral vector to express channelrhodopsin2 (CAV2-PRS-ChR2-mCherry). LC microinjection of CAV2-PRS-ChR2-mCherry produced selective, stable, transduction of noradrenergic neurons allowing reliable opto-activation in vitro. The ChR2-transduced LC neurons were opto-identifiable in vivo and functional control was demonstrated for >6 months by evoked sleep-wake transitions. Spinal injection of CAV2-PRS-ChR2-mCherry retrogradely transduced pontine noradrenergic neurons, predominantly in the LC but also in A5 and A7. A pontospinal LC (ps:LC) module was identifiable, with somata located more ventrally within the nucleus and with a discrete subset of projection targets. These ps:LC neurons had distinct electrophysiological properties with shorter action potentials and smaller afterhyperpolarizations compared to neurons located in the core of the LC. In vivo recordings of ps:LC neurons showed a lower spontaneous firing frequency than those in the core and they were all excited by noxious stimuli. Using this CAV2-based approach we have demonstrated the ability to retrogradely target, characterise and optogenetically manipulate a central noradrenergic circuit and show that the ps:LC module forms a discrete unit.This article is part of a Special Issue entitled SI: Noradrenergic System

    Significant regional differences in antibiotic use across 576 US hospitals and 11 701 326 adult admissions, 2016-2017

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    BACKGROUND: Quantifying the amount and diversity of antibiotic use in United States hospitals assists antibiotic stewardship efforts but is hampered by limited national surveillance. Our study aimed to address this knowledge gap by examining adult antibiotic use across 576 hospitals and nearly 12 million encounters in 2016-2017. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of patients aged ≥ 18 years discharged from hospitals in the Premier Healthcare Database between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2017. Using daily antibiotic charge data, we mapped antibiotics to mutually exclusive classes and to spectrum of activity categories. We evaluated relationships between facility and case-mix characteristics and antibiotic use in negative binomial regression models. RESULTS: The study included 11 701 326 admissions, totaling 64 064 632 patient-days, across 576 hospitals. Overall, patients received antibiotics in 65% of hospitalizations, at a crude rate of 870 days of therapy (DOT) per 1000 patient-days. By class, use was highest among β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations, third- and fourth-generation cephalosporins, and glycopeptides. Teaching hospitals averaged lower rates of total antibiotic use than nonteaching hospitals (834 vs 957 DOT per 1000 patient-days; P \u3c .001). In adjusted models, teaching hospitals remained associated with lower use of third- and fourth-generation cephalosporins and antipseudomonal agents (adjusted incidence rate ratio [95% confidence interval], 0.92 [.86-.97] and 0.91 [.85-.98], respectively). Significant regional differences in total and class-specific antibiotic use also persisted in adjusted models. CONCLUSIONS: Adult inpatient antibiotic use remains high, driven predominantly by broad-spectrum agents. Better understanding reasons for interhospital usage differences, including by region and teaching status, may inform efforts to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing
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