Streptococcal Skin and Skin-Structure Infections

Infections attributable to Streptococcus are protean. These range from mild skin and soft tissue infections to life-threatening conditions like meningitis, endocarditis and toxic shock syndrome. In addition, streptococcal infection can be associated with noninfectious sequelae like rheumatic fever and post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis. There is a wide range of Streptococcus spp. causing human infections and different classifications of these organisms have been described, the most quoted being the Lancefield classification based on cell-wall antigens. Streptococci can be studied based on their species: S. pyogenes, S. pneumoniae, S. anginosus etc. or by the Lancefield classification group A, B, C, D etc. or by the clinical syndromes associated with these bacteria. This chapter will describe clinical syndromes associated with streptococcal skin and soft tissue infections ranging from mild: cellulitis and lymphangitis which can be treated in the out-patient setting, to more aggressive manifestations that require hospitalization (sepsis and toxic shock syndrome) and even surgery (necrotizing fasciitis, myositis and gangrene), It will also provide clues to clinical diagnosis as well as suggest recommendations for optimized management of these conditions

In Vitro Anti-Listerial Activities of Crude n-Hexane and Aqueous Extracts of Garcinia kola (heckel) Seeds

We assessed the anti-Listerial activities of crude n-hexane and aqueous extracts of Garcinia kola seeds against a panel of 42 Listeria isolates previously isolated from wastewater effluents in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa and belonging to Listeria monocytogenes, Listeria grayi and Listeria ivanovii species. The n-hexane fraction was active against 45% of the test bacteria with zones of inhibition ranging between 8–17 mm, while the aqueous fraction was active against 29% with zones of inhibition ranging between 8–11 mm. The minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) were within the ranges of 0.079–0.625 mg/mL for the n-hexane extract and 10 to >10 mg/mL for the aqueous extract. The rate of kill experiment carried out for the n-hexane extract only, revealed complete elimination of the initial bacterial population for L. grayi (LAL 15) at 3× and 4× MIC after 90 and 60 min; L. monocytogenes (LAL 8) at 3× and 4× MIC after 60 and 15 min; L. ivanovii (LEL 18) at 3× and 4× MIC after 120 and 15 min; L. ivanovii (LEL 30) at 2, 3 and 4× MIC values after 105, 90 and 15 min exposure time respectively. The rate of kill activities were time- and concentration-dependant and the extract proved to be bactericidal as it achieved a more than 3log10 decrease in viable cell counts after 2 h exposure time for all of the four test organisms at 3× and 4× MIC values. The results therefore show the potential presence of anti-Listerial compounds in Garcinia kola seeds that can be exploited in effective anti-Listerial chemotherapy

Human papillomavirus and genital cancer

Human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections world-wide. Low-risk HPV-types are associated with genital warts. Persistent infection with high-risk HPV-types is associated with genital cancers. Smoking and HIV infection have consistently been associated with longer duration of HPV infection and risk for genital cancer. There is an increasing incidence of anal cancers, and a close association with HPV infection has been demonstrated. Receptive anal sex and HIV-positive status are associated with a high risk for anal cancer. Two HPV vaccines are now available and offer protection from infection by the HPV-types included in the vaccine. This benefit is maximally seen in young women who were uninfected prior to vaccination

Colon cancer and enterococcus bacteremia co-affection: A dangerous alliance

Adenocarcinoma of the colorectal region is one of the leading causes of cancer-related mortality in the USA and hence an important public health concern. Enterococci are emerging as an important cause of infection in the elderly. While translocation of enteric bacteria into the bloodstream is a known phenomenon in patients with infectious, inflammatory or infiltrative conditions of the bowel, a causative link between Enterococcus bacteremia and colorectal cancer has not been established in medical literature. We report the case of a patient presenting with E. faecalis bacteremia who was also diagnosed with infiltrating adenocarcinoma of the rectum. We discuss a possible relationship between these two conditions. Keywords: Enterococcus bacteremia, Colorectal adenocarcinom

Tuberculosis, human immunodeficiency virus, and the immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome

Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) continues to remain a major health problem in India in spite of achieving nationwide coverage with directly observed therapy since 2006. The estimated incidence of 2.2 million TB cases and a prevalence of 2.5 million in the year 2015 make India the country with the highest burden of TB in the world. In addition, it is estimated that a substantial part of the healthy population (up to 40%) has latent (inactive) TB. India had estimated 2.1 million people living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the year 2015...HIV and TB coinfection creates a perfect storm in terms of poor outcomes secondary to the multiple challenges in the management of these two infections