Epidemiologic surveillance of nosocomial infections in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit of a developing country

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Nosocomial Infections (NI) are a frequent and relevant problem. The purpose of this study was to determine the epidemiology of the three most common NI in a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit from a developing country.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We performed a prospective study in a single Pediatric Intensive Care Unit during 12 months. Children were assessed for 3 NI: bloodstream infections (BSI), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) and urinary tract infections (UTI), according to Center for Disease Control criteria. Use of devices (endotracheal tube [ETT], central venous catheter [CVC] and urinary catheter [UC]) was recorded.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Four hundred fourteen patients were admitted; 81 patients (19.5%) developed 85 NIs. Density of incidence of BSI, VAP and UTI was 18.1, 7.9 and 5.1/1000 days of use of CVC, ETT and UC respectively. BSI was more common in children with CVCs than in those without CVCs (20% <it>vs</it>. 4.7%, p < 0.05). <it>Candida </it>spp. was the commonest microorganism in BSI (41%), followed by Coagulase-negative <it>Staphylococcus </it>(17%). <it>Pseudomonas </it>(52%) was the most common germ for VAP and <it>Candida </it>(71%) for UTI. The presence of NI was associated with increased mortality (38.2% <it>vs</it>. 20.4% in children without NI; p < 0.001) and the median length of ICU stay (23 <it>vs</it>. 6 days in children without NI; p < 0.001). Children with NI had longer average hospital stay previous to diagnosis of this condition (12.3 <it>vs</it>. 6 days; p < 0.001).</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>One of every 5 children acquires an NI in the PICU. Its presence was associated with increased mortality and length of stay. At the same time a longer stay was associated with an increased risk of developing NI.</p

Caracterizacion ultra-estructural de metacercarias de Diplostomum sp en Orestias luteus del Lago Titicaca, Perú

The objective of the present work was the ultra-structural characterization of metacercariae of Diplostomum sp in Orestias luteus from Lake Titicaca, Puno, Peru. 35 fish collected through non-probabilistic sampling were anesthetized with tricaine monosulfonate (Tricaine-s®) and necropsied to determine the number of Diplostomum sp present per fish. The extracted parasites were fixed and preserved for study by scanning electron microscope. The frequency of parasitosis was 48.6% (IC 95%: 32.0-65.1) with a mean parasitic intensity of infection of 3.53 (low). The metacercaria of Diplostomum sp are lingui form in shape with papillae unevenly distributed on the surface of the body, have a posterior border with a slight conical prominence, and an extreme anterior circle where the oral suction cup is located. There is also an ellipsoidal acetabulum located in the anterior and ventral third of the posterior segment of the body; behind that is the ovoid-shaped tri bocytic organ. The morpho anatomic characteristics of the parasite under study coincide with Diplostomum mordax. The prevalence of Diplostomum sp in Lake Titicaca is high compared to previous years. However, the average intensity is low; suggesting that, for the moment, Diplostomum sp is not a threat to the health of O. luteus.El objetivo del presente trabajo fue la caracterización ultraestructural de metacercarias de Diplostomum sp en Orestias luteus del lago Titicaca, Puno, Perú. Se recolectaron 35 peces mediante muestreo no probabilístico los cuales fueron anestesiados con tricaina mono sulfonato (Tricaine-s®) y se les realizó necropsia para determinar el número de Diplostomum sp presente por pez. Los parásitos extraídos se fijaron y conservaron para su estudio mediante microscopía electrónica de barrido. La frecuencia de parasitosis fue de 48,6% (IC95%: 32,0-65,1) con una intensidad de infección parasitaria media de 3,53 (baja). La metacercaria de Diplostomum sp son de forma linguiforme con papilas distribuidas de manera desigual en la superficie del cuerpo, tienen un borde posterior con una ligera prominencia cónica y un círculo anterior extremo donde se ubica la ventosa oral. También hay un acetábulo elipsoidal ubicado en el tercio anterior y ventral del segmento posterior del cuerpo; detrás de eso está el órgano tribocítico de forma ovoide. Las características morfo-anatómicas del parásito en estudio coinciden con Diplostomum mordax. La prevalencia de Diplostomum sp en el lago Titicaca es alto en comparación con años anteriores. Sin embargo, la intensidad media es baja; sugiriendo que, por el momento, Diplostomum sp. no es una amenaza para la salud de O. luteus

Bacterial Toxicity of Potassium Tellurite: Unveiling an Ancient Enigma

Biochemical, genetic, enzymatic and molecular approaches were used to demonstrate, for the first time, that tellurite (TeO(3) (2−)) toxicity in E. coli involves superoxide formation. This radical is derived, at least in part, from enzymatic TeO(3) (2−) reduction. This conclusion is supported by the following observations made in K(2)TeO(3)-treated E. coli BW25113: i) induction of the ibpA gene encoding for the small heat shock protein IbpA, which has been associated with resistance to superoxide, ii) increase of cytoplasmic reactive oxygen species (ROS) as determined with ROS-specific probe 2′7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate (H(2)DCFDA), iii) increase of carbonyl content in cellular proteins, iv) increase in the generation of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARs), v) inactivation of oxidative stress-sensitive [Fe-S] enzymes such as aconitase, vi) increase of superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, vii) increase of sodA, sodB and soxS mRNA transcription, and viii) generation of superoxide radical during in vitro enzymatic reduction of potassium tellurite

Catalases Are NAD(P)H-Dependent Tellurite Reductases

Reactive oxygen species damage intracellular targets and are implicated in cancer, genetic disease, mutagenesis, and aging. Catalases are among the key enzymatic defenses against one of the most physiologically abundant reactive oxygen species, hydrogen peroxide. The well-studied, heme-dependent catalases accelerate the rate of the dismutation of peroxide to molecular oxygen and water with near kinetic perfection. Many catalases also bind the cofactors NADPH and NADH tenaciously, but, surprisingly, NAD(P)H is not required for their dismutase activity. Although NAD(P)H protects bovine catalase against oxidative damage by its peroxide substrate, the catalytic role of the nicotinamide cofactor in the function of this enzyme has remained a biochemical mystery to date. Anions formed by heavy metal oxides are among the most highly reactive, natural oxidizing agents. Here, we show that a natural isolate of Staphylococcus epidermidis resistant to tellurite detoxifies this anion thanks to a novel activity of its catalase, and that a subset of both bacterial and mammalian catalases carry out the NAD(P)H-dependent reduction of soluble tellurite ion (TeO(3) (2−)) to the less toxic, insoluble metal, tellurium (Te°), in vitro. An Escherichia coli mutant defective in the KatG catalase/peroxidase is sensitive to tellurite, and expression of the S. epidermidis catalase gene in a heterologous E. coli host confers increased resistance to tellurite as well as to hydrogen peroxide in vivo, arguing that S. epidermidis catalase provides a physiological line of defense against both of these strong oxidizing agents. Kinetic studies reveal that bovine catalase reduces tellurite with a low Michaelis-Menten constant, a result suggesting that tellurite is among the natural substrates of this enzyme. The reduction of tellurite by bovine catalase occurs at the expense of producing the highly reactive superoxide radical

A new species of cosmocercoides (Nematoda; cosmocercidae) and other helminths in leptodactylus latrans (anura; leptodactylidae) from Argentina

Cosmocercoides latrans n. sp. (Cosmocercidae) from the small intestine of Leptodactylus latrans (Anura: Leptodactylidae) from Northeastern Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina is described. The new species can be distinguished from their congeners by a combination of the characters, among which stands out the number of rosette papillae, the lack of gubernaculum and the presence of lateral alae in both sexes. There are over 20 species in the genus Cosmocercoides, and Cosmocercoides latrans n. sp. represents the third species from the Neotropical realm and the second for Argentina. Additionally, seven previously known taxa are reported; Pseudoacanthocephalus cf. lutzi, Catadiscus uruguayensis, Rauschiella palmipedis, Aplectana hylambatis, Cosmocerca parva, Schrankiana sp. and Rhabdias elegans; providing literature records and information on distribution and host-parasite relationships.Fil: Draghi, Regina. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Zoología Invertebrados; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Drago, Fabiana Beatriz. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Zoología Invertebrados; Argentina. Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas; ArgentinaFil: Lunaschi, Lía Inés. Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. División Zoología Invertebrados; Argentin

The Death and Rebirth of a Party System, Peru 1978-2001

This article evaluates structural, institutional, and actor-centered explanations of the collapse of the Peruvian party system around 1990 and its surprising partial recovery in 2001. It begins by describing the changes in the dependent variable, the emergence, collapse, and partial resurrection of the 1980s Peruvian party system. The next section examines the argument that the large size and rapid growth of the informal sector undermined the party system and led to its collapse. The author shows that the evidence does not support this argument. The article then examines changes in the electoral system. The author demonstrates that, contrary to theoretical expectations, the changes in the electoral system do not correlate with the observed changes in the party system. The final section shows that performance failure by political elites, including corruption in government, was more important than social cleavages or electoral institutions in the collapse and partial recovery of the party system.Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

Helmintos parásitos de Telmatobius jelskii (Peters) (Anura, Leptodactylidae) de Lima, Perú Helminth parasites of Telmatobius jelskii (Peters) (Anura, Leptodactylidae) from Lima, Peru

<abstract language="eng">A quantitative research of parasites of 67 endemic frog Telmatobius jelskii (Peters, 1863) collected from Laguna Tucto (76°46'11"W, 10°39'11"S) where Pativilca River is originated was conducted, and was located in the Province of Oyon, high Andean area from the Department of Lima, Peru during September-October 2000. Of the frogs collected, 23 were females and 44 males. Male showed a length between 5.2 ± 0.5 cm (range = 4.0-6.4 cm) and female between 5.5 ± 1 cm (range = 3.9-7.6 cm) and were not found differences between both sexes. 86 specimens of parasite and three species in total during all the survey were collected. 28 hosts were infected (41.8%). twenty-five hosts (37.3%) showed infection with one parasite species, and three (4.5%) had two parasite species. Three parasite species were found: Gorgoderina parvicava Travassos, 1922 (Digenea: Gorgoderidae) (Prevalence = 40.3%; mean Intensity = 3.1; mean abundance = 1.2), Cylindrotaenia americana Jewell, 1916 (Cestoda: Proteocephalidae) (Prevalence = 3%; mean Intensity = 1; mean abundance = 0.02) and Aplectana hylambatis (Baylis, 1927) (Nematoda: Cosmocercidae) (Prevalence = 3%; mean Intensity = 1; mean abundance = 0.02). G. parvicava had an overdispersed distribution and was the dominant species. An effect of sex and length with prevalence and mean abundance of infection of G. parvicava was not found. The relationship of helminthes parasites with T. jelskii is discussed. G. parvicava and C. americana are new records for T. jelskii