Study data for "Impact of ivermectin administered for scabies treatment on the prevalence of head lice in Atoifi, Solomon Islands"

Scabies and head lice are ubiquitous ectoparasitic infestations that are common across the Pacific Islands. Ivermectin is an effective treatment for both conditions, although the doses used vary. At a community level, mass drug administration (MDA) with ivermectin is an effective strategy to decrease prevalence of scabies. To what extent MDA with ivermectin will also reduce prevalence of head lice is unknown. Head lice prevalence was assessed before and after MDA with oral ivermectin (at a dose of 200 micrograms per kilogram of body weight) administered on day 1 and day 8. The primary outcome was the change in prevalence of head louse infestation at two weeks compared to baseline. Longer term efficacy was assessed three months after MDA. 118 participants were enrolled. Baseline prevalence of active head louse infestation was 25.4% (95% CI 18.4-34.0). At three-month follow-up, prevalence was 7.5% (95% CI 2.7-12.3), a relative reduction of 70.6% (95% CI 72.7%-91.4%, p <0.001). Head louse infestation was associated with younger age (age ≤10 years: prevalence 46.7%; adjusted odds ratio compared to adults of 7.2, 95%CI 2.0-25.9) and with having at least one other member of the household with active head louse infestation (adjusted odds ratio 4.3, 95%CI 1.7-11.1). Head louse infestation is common in the Solomon Islands. This proof of principle study shows that oral ivermectin at a dose of 200 micrograms per kilogram can reduce the burden of active head louse infestation, offering an additional collateral benefit of MDA with ivermectin for scabies control

The clinical, genomic, and microbiological profile of invasive multi-drug resistant Escherichia coli in a major teaching hospital in the United Kingdom.

Escherichia coli is a ubiquitous component of the human gut microbiome, but is also a common pathogen, causing around 40, 000 bloodstream infections (BSI) in the United Kingdom (UK) annually. The number of E. coli BSI has increased over the last decade in the UK, and emerging antimicrobial resistance (AMR) profiles threaten treatment options. Here, we combined clinical, epidemiological, and whole genome sequencing data with high content imaging to characterise over 300 E. coli isolates associated with BSI in a large teaching hospital in the East of England. Overall, only a limited number of sequence types (ST) were responsible for the majority of organisms causing invasive disease. The most abundant (20 % of all isolates) was ST131, of which around 90 % comprised the pandemic O25b:H4 group. ST131-O25b:H4 isolates were frequently multi-drug resistant (MDR), with a high prevalence of extended spectrum β-lactamases (ESBL) and fluoroquinolone resistance. There was no association between AMR phenotypes and the source of E. coli bacteraemia or whether the infection was healthcare-associated. Several clusters of ST131 were genetically similar, potentially suggesting a shared transmission network. However, there was no clear epidemiological associations between these cases, and they included organisms from both healthcare-associated and non-healthcare-associated origins. The majority of ST131 isolates exhibited strong binding with an anti-O25b antibody, raising the possibility of developing rapid diagnostics targeting this pathogen. In summary, our data suggest that a restricted set of MDR E. coli populations can be maintained and spread across both community and healthcare settings in this location, contributing disproportionately to invasive disease and AMR

Applying prospective genomic surveillance to support investigation of hospital-onset COVID-19

Here, we provide an update on our previous Article,1 which described the use of rapid SARS-CoV-2 genome sequencing to investigate hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH), Cambridge, UK. CUH experienced a substantial second wave of COVID-19 (figure). Between Nov 2, 2020, and Feb 7, 2021, 162 (14%) of 1178 patients with COVID-19 at CUH had a suspected or definite HAI (as previously defined1), and 465 infected health-care workers (HCWs) were identified via the staff screening programme.2 Nanopore sequencing was attempted for 513 (44%) of 1178 patients, prioritising those with hospital-onset infections, and 324 (70%) of 465 HCWs; 252 (21%) of 1178 patients and 317 (68%) of 465 HCWs had SARS-CoV-2 genomes available after quality control filtering (as previously described1). Patient coverage was lower than in our previous study1 and for HCWs, reflecting different diagnostic testing methods and limitations on sequencing capacity. The frequency of the B.1.1.7 PANGO-lineage3 increased from 8% (nine of 109) in November, 2020, to 83% (257 of 311) in January, 2021