Clonal spread of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae among patients at admission and discharge at a Vietnamese neonatal intensive care unit

Background The increasing prevalence of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) is a growing problem globally, particularly in low- to middle-income countries (LMICs). Previous studies have shown high rates of CRE colonisation among patients at hospitals in LMICs, with increased risk of hospital-acquired infections. Methods We isolated carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) from faecal samples collected in 2017 from patients at admission and discharge at a Vietnamese neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). 126 CRKP were whole-genome sequenced. The phylogenetic relationship between the isolates and between clinical CRKP isolates collected in 2012-2018 at the same hospital were investigated. Results NDM-type carbapenemase-(61%) and KPC-2-encoding genes (41%) were the most common carbapenem resistance genes observed among the admission and discharge isolates. Most isolates (56%) belonged to three distinct clonal clusters of ST15, carrying bla(KPC-2), bla(NDM-1) and bla(NDM-4), respectively. Each cluster also comprised clinical isolates from blood collected at the study hospital. The most dominant ST15 clone was shown to be related to isolates collected from the same hospital as far back as in 2012. Conclusions Highly resistant CRKP were found colonising admission and discharge patients at a Vietnamese NICU, emphasising the importance of continued monitoring. Whole-genome sequencing revealed a population of CRKP consisting mostly of ST15 isolates in three clonally related clusters, each related to blood isolates collected from the same hospital. Furthermore, clinical isolates collected from previous years (dating back to 2012) were shown to likely be clonally descended from ST15 isolates in the largest cluster, suggesting a successful hospital strain which can colonise inpatients

Amoxicillin dosing recommendations are very different in European countries : a cross-sectional survey

National antibiotic stewardship programmes recommend monitoring antibiotic consumption and benchmarking. The WHO recommend the Anatomic Therapeutic Chemical classification and respective Defined Daily Doses (DDD) for drug utilization research. This is the most frequently used unit of measure within the European Union (EU). Wide variations in antibiotic consumption exist between EU countries in the outpatient setting, ranging in 2012 from 11.3 (the Netherlands) to 31.9 DDD per 1000 inhabitants and per day (Greece). Penicillins are the most consumed antibacterial agents in the community in all EU countries. Amoxicillin and amoxicillin/clavulanate are the two most widely prescribed penicillins, except in Denmark, Norway and Sweden where penicillin V and other very narrow-spectrum penicillins are used preferentially.peer-reviewe

Ventilator-associated respiratory infection in a resource-restricted setting: impact and etiology.

BACKGROUND: Ventilator-associated respiratory infection (VARI) is a significant problem in resource-restricted intensive care units (ICUs), but differences in casemix and etiology means VARI in resource-restricted ICUs may be different from that found in resource-rich units. Data from these settings are vital to plan preventative interventions and assess their cost-effectiveness, but few are available. METHODS: We conducted a prospective observational study in four Vietnamese ICUs to assess the incidence and impact of VARI. Patients ≥ 16 years old and expected to be mechanically ventilated > 48 h were enrolled in the study and followed daily for 28 days following ICU admission. RESULTS: Four hundred fifty eligible patients were enrolled over 24 months, and after exclusions, 374 patients' data were analyzed. A total of 92/374 cases of VARI (21.7/1000 ventilator days) were diagnosed; 37 (9.9%) of these met ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) criteria (8.7/1000 ventilator days). Patients with any VARI, VAP, or VARI without VAP experienced increased hospital and ICU stay, ICU cost, and antibiotic use (p < 0.01 for all). This was also true for all VARI (p < 0.01 for all) with/without tetanus. There was no increased risk of in-hospital death in patients with VARI compared to those without (VAP HR 1.58, 95% CI 0.75-3.33, p = 0.23; VARI without VAP HR 0.40, 95% CI 0.14-1.17, p = 0.09). In patients with positive endotracheal aspirate cultures, most VARI was caused by Gram-negative organisms; the most frequent were Acinetobacter baumannii (32/73, 43.8%) Klebsiella pneumoniae (26/73, 35.6%), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (24/73, 32.9%). 40/68 (58.8%) patients with positive cultures for these had carbapenem-resistant isolates. Patients with carbapenem-resistant VARI had significantly greater ICU costs than patients with carbapenem-susceptible isolates (6053 USD (IQR 3806-7824) vs 3131 USD (IQR 2108-7551), p = 0.04) and after correction for adequacy of initial antibiotics and APACHE II score, showed a trend towards increased risk of in-hospital death (HR 2.82, 95% CI 0.75-6.75, p = 0.15). CONCLUSIONS: VARI in a resource-restricted setting has limited impact on mortality, but shows significant association with increased patient costs, length of stay, and antibiotic use, particularly when caused by carbapenem-resistant bacteria. Evidence-based interventions to reduce VARI in these settings are urgently needed

Summary of the international clinical guidelines for the management of hospital-acquired and ventilator-acquired pneumonia

A summary of the evidence and recommendations made in the ERS/ESICM/ESCMID/ALAT guidelines for the management of hospital-acquired pneumonia and ventilator-associated pneumonia http://ow.ly/S3zA30iZfLa

Infections, antibiotic treatment and mortality in patients admitted to ICUs in countries considered to have high levels of antibiotic resistance compared to those with low levels

Background: Antimicrobial resistance is an increasing concern in ICUs worldwide. Infection with an antibiotic resistant (ABR) strain of an organism is associated with greater mortality than infection with the non-resistant strain, but there are few data assessing whether being admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) with high levels of antimicrobial resistance is associated with a worse outcome than being admitted to an ICU with low rates of resistance. The aim of this study was, therefore, to compare the characteristics of infections and antibiotic treatments and patient outcomes in patients admitted to ICUs in countries considered as having high levels of antibiotic resistance and those admitted to ICUs in countries considered as having low levels of antibiotic resistance. Methods: Data from the large, international EPIC II one-day point prevalence study on infections in patients hospitalized in ICUs were used. For the current study, we compared the data obtained from patients from two groups of countries: countries with reported MRSA rates of greater than= 25% (highABR: Greece, Israel, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain, and Turkey) and countries with MRSA rates of less than 5% (lowABR: Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden). Results: On the study day, 1187/2204 (53.9%) patients in the HighABR ICUs were infected and 255/558 (45.7%) in the LowABR ICUs (P less than 0.01). Patients in the HighABR ICUs were more severely ill than those in the LowABR ICUs, as reflected by a higher SAPS II score (35.6 vs 32.7, P less than 0.05) and had longer median ICU (12 days vs 5 days) and hospital (24 days vs 16 days) lengths of stay. They also had higher crude ICU (20.0% vs 15.4%) and hospital (27.0% vs 21.5%) mortality rates (both P less than 0.05). However, after multivariable adjustment and matched pair analysis there were no differences in ICU or hospital mortality rates between High or LowABR ICU patients overall or among those with infections. Conclusions: Being hospitalized in an ICU in a region with high levels of antimicrobial resistance is not associated per se with a worse outcome

International ERS/ESICM/ESCMID/ALAT guidelines for the management of hospital-acquired pneumonia and ventilator-associated pneumonia

The most recent European guidelines and task force reports on hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) and ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) were published almost 10 years ago. Since then, further randomised clinical trials of HAP and VAP have been conducted and new information has become available. Studies of epidemiology, diagnosis, empiric treatment, response to treatment, new antibiotics or new forms of antibiotic administration and disease prevention have changed old paradigms. In addition, important differences between approaches in Europe and the USA have become apparent.The European Respiratory Society launched a project to develop new international guidelines for HAP and VAP. Other European societies, including the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine and the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, were invited to participate and appointed their representatives. The Latin American Thoracic Association was also invited.A total of 15 experts and two methodologists made up the panel. Three experts from the USA were also invited (Michael S. Niederman, Marin Kollef and Richard Wunderink).Applying the GRADE (Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation) methodology, the panel selected seven PICO (population-intervention-comparison-outcome) questions that generated a series of recommendations for HAP/VAP diagnosis, treatment and prevention.</p

Location of Acquired HAI and Association with Invasive Devices.

<p>Location of Acquired HAI and Association with Invasive Devices.</p

Antimicrobials for Systemic Use by Indication.

<p>CAIs: Community acquired infections; HAIs: Hospital-acquired infections; Prophylaxis: Medical and surgical prophylaxis; others: other indications (e.g. erythromycin use for prokinetic) and unknown indication.</p

The Study Site Locations.

<p>The Study Site Locations.</p

Risk Factors for Acquiring HAI in ICU.

<p>Risk Factors for Acquiring HAI in ICU.</p