Rate of Isolation and Trends of Antimicrobial Resistance of Multidrug Resistant Pseudomonas Aeruginosa from Otorrhea in Chronic Suppurative Otitis Media

ObjectivesTo assess the rate of isolation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) and multidrug-resistant PA (MDR-PA) from patients with chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) otorrhea and the annual trend of antibiotic-resistance.MethodsOtorrhea samples were collected aseptically from 1,598 CSOM patients. The rate of bacterial isolation and the results of antibiotic susceptibility testing were evaluated retrospectively.ResultsThe PA isolation rate from CSOM otorrhea was 24.4%. Of the 398 isolated strains tested for their susceptibilities to 10 antibiotics, 395 strains showed definitive results. Of these, 183 (46.3%) were susceptible to whole antibiotics and 212 (53.7%) was resistant to more than 1 antibiotics, with the frequency of antibiotics-resistance increasing significantly over time. Although strains susceptible to all antibiotics decreased over time, the rate of isolation of MDR-PA did not change significantly. Resistance to aminoglycosides and quinolones was higher than to other antibiotics and significantly increased over time, whereas resistance to other antibiotics showed no trend.ConclusionMDR-PA, assessed using five individual antibiotics and six antibiotic-classes, showed no tendency to increase or decrease over time. This may have been due to increased concern about antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains, leading to improved infection control within hospitals and healthcare centers

Hepatitis B Virus Genotype C Prevails Among Chronic Carriers of the Virus in Korea

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is one of the major causative agents of chronic liver diseases in Korea. HBV has been classified into 8 genotypes by a divergence of >8% in the entire genomic sequence, and have distinct geographic distributions. There are limited data on the relevance between HBV genotypes and clinical outcomes in Korea. To investigate the clinical feature relating to HBV genotype in Korea, a total 120 serum samples with HBsAg (65 from Seoul and 55 from the other city in Korea) were obtained from each 30 chronic HBV carriers with asymptomatic carrier (ASC), chronic hepatitis (CH), liver cirrhosis (LC) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). HBV genotype was determined by either enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using monoclonal antibodies against genotype-specific epitopes in the preS2-region or the direct sequencing of small S gene. HBV genotypes were determined in 105 (87.5%) of 120 samples. HBV genotype C was identified in all HBV carriers with ASC, CH, LC, and HCC. Genotypes A, B, D, E, F and G were not detected in any of them. Genotype C HBV prevails predominantly among chronic carriers of the virus in Korea, irrespective of their clinical stages of liver disease and geographic origin

Effect Of Materials And Age On The Coefficient Of Thermal Expansion Of Concrete Paving Mixture

This study examined the effect of the materials and age on the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of concrete paving mixtures at 28 and 120 days. Concrete specimens were prepared in the laboratory by varying the mix design variables with different types of aggregate to produce different mixes using Portland cement. The microstructures of the concrete mixtures were also observed by scanning electron microscopy to determine the relationship between the volume change in concrete and the formation of microcracks. Statistical analyses of the experimental data suggested that the CTEs measured at 120 days are significantly lower than those measured at 28 days. An analysis of variance indicated that the mixture with granite results in significantly higher CTE reduction with time than the mixture with dolomite. The larger volume change with a higher CTE may be due to the formation of microcracks in concrete

Effects Of Aggregate Mineralogy On The Thermal Expansion Behavior Of Concrete

The coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of concrete is greatly influenced by thermal behavior of aggregates due to their large volume proportion in concrete. In order to understand the effect of coarse and fine aggregate on the thermal behavior of concrete, the average CTE of concrete with granite and dolomite as coarse aggregate and granite-originated manufactured sand and alluvial natural sand as fine aggregate were measured. The results showed that concretes composed of high stone volume of granite with MS have the lowest CTE value (4.44μμ \u3e/°F) whereas those composed of low stone volume of granite with siliceous NS have the highest CTE value (5.42μμ/°F). Testing results demonstrate that the effect of fine aggregate in concrete mixture is more dominant while using granite as coarse aggregate rather than dolomite. In addition, this study characterized the microstructure and chemical composition of both coarse and fine aggregates by utilizing petrographic analysis tools. Testing results were used to identify minerals showing varied thermal behavior and also to correlate with the measured CTE values of the concrete specimens so that better understanding of thermal expansion behavior of concrete could be made

Effects of hormone therapy on the clinical outcomes of endoscopic intervention in patients with endometriosis-related ureteral obstruction

Purpose: We investigated whether endoscopic interventions, including laser endoureterotomy and balloon dilatation following hormone therapy, are a good choice to treat ureteral obstruction due to ureteral endometriosis instead of laparoscopic or open surgery. Materials and Methods: Patients with ureteral obstruction due to endometriosis who underwent endoscopic intervention between 2004 and 2021 were reviewed. Patients with other causes of ureteral obstruction or previous ureteral surgery were excluded from the study. The primary endpoint was the 3-month success rate of endoscopic intervention with or without hormone therapy. Secondary endpoints were the success rate of endoscopic intervention between the hormone-treated and hormone-untreated groups at 6 months and the success rate according to the hormone therapy response of endometriosis at 3 and 6 months. Results: Eighteen patients with 19 ureter units were evaluated in this study, including 12 patients receiving hormone therapy and six patients not receiving hormone therapy. Among patients receiving hormone therapy, one patient had bilateral ureteral obstruction. The success rate of endoscopic intervention was higher in patients who received hormone therapy than in those who did not receive hormone therapy three months after endoscopic intervention (76.9% vs. 0.0%, p=0.003). The same result was also found 6 months after endoscopic intervention (75.0% vs. 0.0%, p=0.005). In addition, the success rates were higher in the hormone-responsive group than in the non-responsive group (100.0% vs. 57.1%), although the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.122). Conclusions: Ureteral obstruction caused by endometriosis can be effectively treated by endoscopic intervention with hormone therapy in select patients