Do antibiotic-impregnated shunts in hydrocephalus therapy reduce the risk of infection? An observational study in 258 patients

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Shunt infection in hydrocephalus patients is a severe, even life-threatening complication. Antibiotic-impregnated shunts (AIS) have been developed in an attempt to reduce rate of shunt infection. The study was performed to analyze if AIS can diminish the rate of shunt infection. The pathogenic nature of shunt infection in patients with AIS systems and those without antibiotic impregnated shunts (non-AIS) was compared.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Over a period of 24 months in the Department of Neurosurgery at University Hospital of Tübingen shunt surgery was performed in 258 patients. In 86 patients AIS systems were implanted. Shunt catheters were commercially impregnated with clindamycin and rifampicin. Analysis of the clinical data included sex, age, classification of hydrocephalus, shunt types and risk factors for shunt infection [age (< 1 year and > 80 years), prematurely born patients, external ventricular drainage, former shunt infection, former systemic infection, disturbance of consciousness, former radiation-/chemotherapy]. Infection rates and underlying bacterial pathogens of patients with AIS were compared to patients with implanted non-AIS systems (172 patients).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>AIS and non-AIS patients did not differ in sex, etiology of hydrocephalus and the shunt type. In the AIS group 72 out of 86 patients had at least one risk factor (83.7 %), compared to 126 patients in the non-AIS group (73.3 %). There was no significant difference between the two groups (p = 0.0629; Fisher's exact test). In patients with no risk factors, only one patient with non-AIS suffered from shunt infection. In patients with one or more risk factors the rate for shunt infection was 7.14 % in patients with non-AIS and 6.94 % in patients with AIS. Former shunt infection (p = 0.0124) was related to higher risk for shunt infection. The use of AIS had therefore no significant advantage (p = 0.8611; multiple logistic regression).</p> <p>Significantly related to a shunt infection was the number of shunt surgeries. 190 interventions in the AIS group (2.21 interventions per patient) and 408 in the non-AIS group (2.37 interventions per patient) had been performed (p = 0.3063; Wilcoxon). There was no shunt infection in the group of patients on whom only one shunt surgery was performed. In patients with at least two shunt surgeries the infection rate was 9%. The infection rate in AIS patients was 5/52 (9.6 %) and in the non-AIS 10/114 (8.77 %), (p = 1.0; Fisher's exact test). Staphylococcus epidermidis was the most frequent pathogen for shunt infection. Fourteen out of 15 infections occurred within the first 6 months of surgery. The most frequent pathogen for shunt infection was S. epidermidis. No toxic or allergic complications were seen using the AIS shunt systems. The presented data show a remarkably low infection rate of 5.8 % in the non-AIS group compared to other studies which demonstrated a significant decrease in the infection rate by AIS.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>AIS did not significantly reduce shunt infection in hydrocephalus patients in the presented study. In the AIS group three patients suffered from shunt infections caused by skin ulceration or neurosurgical procedures with exposure of the cerebrospinal liquor after shunt implantation. AIS was not developed to prevent infection in such cases, therefore an advantage of AIS can not be excluded. In view of the presented data and the small number of reported studies a prospective randomized multicenter study is required.</p

Where should patients with or at risk of delirium be treated in an acute care system? Comparing the rates of delirium in patients receiving usual care versus alternative care : a systematic review and meta‐analysis

Background: Delirium is an acute condition that occurs in hospitalised patients and leads to poor patient outcomes that can last long term. Therefore, the importance of prevention is undeniable and adopting new models of care for at risk patients should be prioritised. Objectives: This systematic review and meta‐analysis will assess the effectiveness of different interventions designed to prevent or manage delirium in acutely unwell hospitalised patients. Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsychINFO, OpenGrey, Web of Science and reference lists of journals were searched. Eligible studies reported on incidence or duration of delirium, used a validated delirium diagnostic tool, and compared an intervention to either a control or another intervention group. Meta‐analyses were conducted, and GRADE pro software was used to assess the certainty of evidence. This review is registered on PROSPERO. Results: A total of 59 studies were included and 33 were eligible for meta‐analysis. Delirium incidence was most significantly reduced by non‐pharmacological multicomponent interventions compared to usual care, with pooled risk ratios of 0.57 (95% CI: 0.44 to 0.73, ten randomised controlled trials) and 0.47 (95% CI: 0.35 to 0.64, six observational studies). Single component interventions did not significantly reduce delirium incidence compared to usual care in seven randomised trials (risk ratio= 0.92, 95% CI: 0.81 to 1.04). The most effective single component intervention in reducing delirium incidence, was a hospital‐at‐home intervention (risk ratio = 0.29, 95% CI: 0.09 to 0.87). Conclusions: Non‐pharmacological multicomponent interventions are effective in preventing delirium, however the same cannot be said for other interventions due to uncertain results. There is some evidence that providing multicomponent interventions in patients’ homes is more effective than a hospital setting. Therefore, researching the benefits of hospital‐at‐home interventions in delirium prevention is recommended

A Multimedia Interactive Education System for Prostate Cancer Patients: Development and Preliminary Evaluation

BACKGROUND: A cancer diagnosis is highly distressing. Yet, to make informed treatment choices patients have to learn complicated disease and treatment information that is often fraught with medical and statistical terminology. Thus, patients need accurate and easy-to-understand information. OBJECTIVE: To introduce the development and preliminary evaluation through focus groups of a novel highly-interactive multimedia-education software program for patients diagnosed with localized prostate cancer. METHODS: The prostate interactive education system uses the metaphor of rooms in a virtual health center (ie, reception area, a library, physician offices, group meeting room) to organize information. Text information contained in the library is tailored to a person's information-seeking preference (ie, high versus low information seeker). We conducted a preliminary evaluation through 5 separate focus groups with prostate cancer survivors (N = 18) and their spouses (N = 15). RESULTS: Focus group results point to the timeliness and high acceptability of the software among the target audience. Results also underscore the importance of a guide or tutor who assists in navigating the program and who responds to queries to facilitate information retrieval. CONCLUSIONS: Focus groups have established the validity of our approach and point to new directions to further enhance the user interface