An international prospective study of INICC analyzing the incidence and risk factors for catheter-associated urinary tract infections in 235 ICUs across 8 Asian Countries

Background: Identify urinary catheter (UC)-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) incidence and risk factors (RF) in 235 ICUs in 8 Asian countries: India, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. Methods: From January 1, 2014, to February 12, 2022, we conducted a prospective cohort study. To estimate CAUTI incidence, the number of UC days was the denominator, and CAUTI was the numerator. To estimate CAUTI RFs, we analyzed 11 variables using multiple logistic regression. Results: 84,920 patients hospitalized for 499,272 patient days acquired 869 CAUTIs. The pooled CAUTI rate per 1,000 UC-days was 3.08; for those using suprapubic-catheters (4.11); indwelling-catheters (2.65); trauma-ICU (10.55), neurologic-ICU (7.17), neurosurgical-ICU (5.28); in lower- middle-income countries (3.05); in upper-middle-income countries (1.71); at public-hospitals (5.98), at private-hospitals (3.09), at teaching-hospitals (2.04). The following variables were identified as CAUTI RFs: Age (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.01; 95% CI = 1.01-1.02; P < .0001); female sex (aOR = 1.39; 95% CI = 1.21-1.59; P < .0001); using suprapubic-catheter (aOR = 4.72; 95% CI = 1.69-13.21; P < .0001); length of stay before CAUTI acquisition (aOR = 1.04; 95% CI = 1.04-1.05; P < .0001); UC and device utilization-ratio (aOR = 1.07; 95% CI = 1.01-1.13; P = .02); hospitalized at trauma-ICU (aOR = 14.12; 95% CI = 4.68-42.67; P < .0001), neurologic-ICU (aOR = 14.13; 95% CI = 6.63-30.11; P < .0001), neurosurgical-ICU (aOR = 13.79; 95% CI = 6.88-27.64; P < .0001); public-facilities (aOR = 3.23; 95% CI = 2.34-4.46; P < .0001). Discussion: CAUTI rate and risk are higher for older patients, women, hospitalized at trauma-ICU, neurologic-ICU, neurosurgical-ICU, and public facilities. All of them are unlikely to change. Conclusions: It is suggested to focus on reducing the length of stay and the Urinary catheter device utilization ratio, avoiding suprapubic catheters, and implementing evidence-based CAUTI prevention recommendations

Breast cancer management pathways during the COVID-19 pandemic: outcomes from the UK ‘Alert Level 4’ phase of the B-MaP-C study

Abstract: Background: The B-MaP-C study aimed to determine alterations to breast cancer (BC) management during the peak transmission period of the UK COVID-19 pandemic and the potential impact of these treatment decisions. Methods: This was a national cohort study of patients with early BC undergoing multidisciplinary team (MDT)-guided treatment recommendations during the pandemic, designated ‘standard’ or ‘COVID-altered’, in the preoperative, operative and post-operative setting. Findings: Of 3776 patients (from 64 UK units) in the study, 2246 (59%) had ‘COVID-altered’ management. ‘Bridging’ endocrine therapy was used (n = 951) where theatre capacity was reduced. There was increasing access to COVID-19 low-risk theatres during the study period (59%). In line with national guidance, immediate breast reconstruction was avoided (n = 299). Where adjuvant chemotherapy was omitted (n = 81), the median benefit was only 3% (IQR 2–9%) using ‘NHS Predict’. There was the rapid adoption of new evidence-based hypofractionated radiotherapy (n = 781, from 46 units). Only 14 patients (1%) tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 during their treatment journey. Conclusions: The majority of ‘COVID-altered’ management decisions were largely in line with pre-COVID evidence-based guidelines, implying that breast cancer survival outcomes are unlikely to be negatively impacted by the pandemic. However, in this study, the potential impact of delays to BC presentation or diagnosis remains unknown

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Assessment of prevalence of tobacco consumption among psychiatric inmates residing in Central Jail, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India: A cross-sectional survey

Aim: The aim of the current cross-sectional study was to assess the prevalence of tobacco consumption among psychiatric jail patients residing in Central Jail, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. Materials and Methods: The study subjects consisted of prediagnosed psychiatric patients residing in Central Jail, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India. A matched control consisting of cross-section of the population, that is, jail inmates residing in the same Central Jail locality was also assessed to compare the psychiatric subjects. An 18 item questionnaire was used to assess the prevalence of tobacco consumption among study subjects. Results: The total number of subjects examined was 244, which comprised of 122 psychiatric inmates and 122 nonpsychiatric inmates. Among all psychiatric inmates, about 57.4% of inmates had a diagnosis of depression, 14.8% had psychotic disorders (such as schizophrenia), and 12.3% had anxiety disorder. A total of 77% study inmates, which comprised of 87.7% psychiatrics and 66.4% nonpsychiatrics had a habit of tobacco consumption (smokeless or smoking). Conclusion: The information presented in this study adds to our understanding of the common tobacco related practices among psychiatric inmate population. Efforts to increase patient awareness of the hazards of tobacco consumption and to eliminate the habit are needed to improve oral and general health of the prison population

GPS Measurements in Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya, North Eastern India, April 2002

April 2002 marked the beginning of the collaborative Global Positioning System (GPS) based Geodesy work in North East India to study the present-day deformation in the13; Arunachal Himalayas and the Shillong Plateau. Although C -MMACS had operated campaign mode stations in the Shillong Plateau (Shillong Peak and Tura) and at Guwahati earlier, this campaign marks the beginning of an extensive and concentrated effort in the region. Permanent GPS stations at Shillong (already operational) and at Tezpur, Guwahati, Mokukchung, Imphal and Aizwal (to be operational) supported by campaign mode stations should generate enough information to work out the present day deformation in North East India. This would give us an insight into the compressive deformation near the eastern syntaxis of the Himalayan Mountain belt and the formation of the Shillong Plateau. This will involve the setting up of six permanent GPS stations in NE India and several campaign mode stations that will be continuously monitored over the next several years to gain an insight into the above questions

Identification and Characterization of Staphylococcus aureus 16S rRNA gene isolated from different Food Specimens from South Indian Region

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) associated food-borne diseases have global impact on human health. Genome wide analyses have shown that S. aureus contains specific endotoxin expressing gene and produce toxic proteins which is responsible for food contamination. Appropriate detection of pathogens is one of the major tool to avoid infection rate and reduce the health and socio-economic burden to human being. In addition, inappropriate handing the specimens, misdiagnosis and limited standard medical support could directly influence the infection rate. The objective of this study was to identify S. aureus from different food specimens from Hyderabad, India. A total of 70 random bacterial nutrient agar medium pure plates were made based on different morphological appearance of bacterial colonies. Preliminary identification of S. aureus based on standardized morphological method showed specific golden yellow colonies. Biochemical assay also verified bacterial specimens. Furthermore, molecular characterization was performed on the basis of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing of 16S rRNA gene of S. aureus. Newly sequenced 16S rRNA gene sequences showed 100% homology to S. aureus, analyzed using NCBI-BLAST tool. The phylogenetic analysis and nucleotide base composition studies performed using 39 sequences of 16S rRNA gene from different isolates of Staphylococcus, including Staphylococcus aureus. For the purpose, 16S rRNA gene sequences were retrieved from the NCBI in FASTA format. The phylogenetic analysis was performed using Maximum Likelihood method and revealed the relationships and percent similarity of Staphylococcus aureus 16S rRNA gene. Keywords: Food-borne diseases; 16S rRNA gene; Maximum Likelihood; Phylogenetic analysis; Staphylococcus aureus

Effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccine (Covaxin) against breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infection in India

India approved COVID-19 vaccine called Covaxin, developed by the Indian Council of Medical Research and Bharat Biotech Ltd. The primary objective of the study was to estimate the effectiveness of Covaxin in preventing breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infection in healthcare workers (HCWs). A test-negative matched case-control study was conducted among HCWs of tertiary care hospital in Eastern India. Any HCW who tested positive for COVID-19 using RT-PCR during April and May 2021 was taken as the case. The HCWs who tested negative for COVID-19 by RT-PCR were considered as controls after matching with the date of testing and profession of the cases. Vaccination data were collected from the institution’s vaccine database and recall. In case of discrepancy, it was confirmed from the CoWIN portal (cowin.gov.in). The sample size was 670 participants (335 pairs). Conditional logistic regression models were used to calculate the adjusted odds ratio for breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infection. Vaccine effectiveness was calculated using the following formula: VE = (1-aOR) × 100%. Sensitivity analysis was done for effectiveness of Covaxin, excluding Covishield vaccination. The mean age of participants was 29.1 years (SD = 7.1), and the majority were males (55.2%). Among the study participants, 60% were completely vaccinated, 18.51% were partially vaccinated, and 21.49% were unvaccinated. After adjusting for age, gender, type of household and past history of COVID-19 disease in conditional logistic models, the vaccine effectiveness was 22% (aOR 0.78, 95% CI: 0.52–1.17; p = .233). Sensitivity analysis with Covaxin showed an effectiveness of 29% (aOR 0.71, 95% CI: 0.47–1.08; p = .114) for preventing breakthrough SARS-CoV-2 infection