Secular trends in antibiotic consumption in the adult population in Emilia-Romagna, Italy, 2003–2009

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Heavy Metal Resistant Bacteria Isolation from Koodankulam Coast: Bacillus sp. and Pseudomonas sp. as Potential Agents for Bioremediation

The present study investigates the heavy metal resistant bacteria were isolated from offshore sea soil of Koodankulam coast, Gulf of Mannar, South East coast of India., Tamil Nadu, India. Bacterial communities in the soil were screened by morphological, biochemical and plasmid analysis and were identified as Bacillus sp., and Pseudomonas sp. High concentrations of toxic metals negatively affect bacterial growth, and therefore, the minimum inhibitory concentration of isolated bacteria was determined against Pb, Hg and Zn by agar dilution technique. The heavy metal polluted soil contains some microorganisms that exhibit tolerance to the metals which in turn helps in the reduction of heavy metals toxicity accumulated in the soil. Isolation, screening and characterization are involved to determine the level of resistance of the bacteria. Here, out of several isolates the Bacillus sp. and Pseudomonas sp. has showed increased resistance to Pb, Hg and Zn. Consequently, this microbial isolate can be potentially used in bioremediation of heavy metal polluted environment

The Italian national surgical site infection surveillance programme and its positive impact, 2009 to 2011

Programmes surveying surgical site infection (SSI) have been implemented throughout the world and are associated with a reduction in SSI rates. We report data on non-prosthetic surgery from the Italian SSI surveillance programme for the period 2009 to 2011. Participation in the programme was voluntary. We evaluated the occurrence of SSI, based on protocols from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, within 30 days of surgery. Demographic data, risk factors, type of surgery and presence of SSI were recorded. The National Coordinating Centre analysed the pooled data. On 355 surgical wards 60,460 operations were recorded, with the number of surveyed intervention doubling over the study period. SSI was observed in 1,628 cases (2,6%) and 60% of SSI were diagnosed through 30-days post discharge surveillance. Operations performed in hospitals with at least two years of surveillance showed a 29% lower risk of SSI. Longer intervention duration, American Society of Anesthesiologists’ (ASA) score of at least three, and pre-surgery hospital stay of at least two days were associated with increased risk of SSI, while videoscopic procedures had reduced SSI rates. Implementation of a national surveillance programme was helpful in reducing SSI rates and should be prioritised in all healthcare systems

Attitudes toward the sars-cov-2 and influenza vaccination in the metropolitan cities of bologna and palermo, italy

Vaccine hesitancy (VH) is known to play a relevant role in thwarting the efforts toward reaching satisfactory influenza vaccination coverage, and has caused similar difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to describe the phenomenon and produce insights on the reasons behind VH. A survey was administered between December 2020 and February 2021 to adults living in the cities of Bologna and Palermo. Of the 443 subjects enrolled, 47.3% were likely to get the influenza vaccination, while 75.6% were willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. The most frequent determinants that motivated the willingness to get the COVID-19 vaccine were trust in the safety of vaccines and belief that the vaccine is an effective tool. As for people’s unwillingness to be vaccinated, being exposed to information that produced doubts about the vaccine and lack of trust in a newly developed vaccine were the most frequently involved determinants. Statistically significant positive associations were found between the willingness to be vaccinated and postgraduate education and the propensity towards influenza vaccination. A negative association with being over 40 years old and of female gender was also found. These results might have an impact in better understanding individual reasons behind VH, identifying which categories are more exposed to it and which strategies should be implemented

Guidance on the Selection of Appropriate Indicators for Quantification of Antimicrobial Usage in Humans and Animals

An increasing variety of indicators of antimicrobial usage has become available in human and veterinary medicine, with no consensus on the most appropriate indicators to be used. The objective of this review is therefore to provide guidance on the selection of indicators, intended for those aiming to quantify antimicrobial usage based on sales, deliveries or reimbursement data. Depending on the study objective, different requirements apply to antimicrobial usage quantification in terms of resolution, comprehensiveness, stability over time, ability to assess exposure and comparability. If the aim is to monitor antimicrobial usage trends, it is crucial to use a robust quantification system that allows stability over time in terms of required data and provided output; to compare usage between different species or countries, comparability must be ensured between the different populations. If data are used for benchmarking, the system comprehensiveness is particularly crucial, while data collected to study the association between usage and resistance should express the exposure level and duration as a measurement of the exerted selection pressure. Antimicrobial usage is generally described as the number of technical units consumed normalized by the population at risk of being treated in a defined period. The technical units vary from number of packages to number of individuals treated daily by adding different levels of complexity such as daily dose or weight at treatment. These technical units are then related to a description of the population at risk, based either on biomass or number of individuals. Conventions and assumptions are needed for all of these calculation steps. However, there is a clear lack of standardization, resulting in poor transparency and comparability. By combining study requirements with available approaches to quantify antimicrobial usage, we provide suggestions on the most appropriate indicators and data sources to be used for a given study objective

Why do paediatricians prescribe antibiotics? Results of an Italian regional project

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To investigate determinants of antibiotic prescription in paediatric care, as a first step of a multilevel intervention to improve prescribing for common respiratory tract infections (RTIs) in a northern Italian region with high antibiotic prescription rate.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A two-step survey was performed: in phase I, knowledge, and attitudes were explored involving all family and hospital paediatricians of Emilia-Romagna and a sample of parents. In phase II, patient care practices were explored in a stratified random sample of visits, both in hospitals and family physician's clinics; parent expectations were investigated in a sub-sample of these visits.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Out of overall 4352 visits for suspected RTIs, in 38% of children an antibiotic was prescribed. Diagnostic uncertainty was perceived by paediatricians as the most frequent cause of inappropriate prescription (56% of 633 interviewed paediatricians); but, rapid antigen detecting tests was used in case of pharyngitis/pharyngotonsillitis by 36% and 21% of family and hospital paediatricians only. More than 50% of paediatricians affirmed to not adopt a "wait and see strategy" in acute otitis. The perceived parental expectation of antibiotics was not indicated by paediatricians as a crucial determinant of prescription, but this perception was the second factor most strongly associated to prescription (OR = 12.8; 95% CI 10.4 - 15.8), the first being the presence of othorrea. Regarding parents, the most important identified factors, potentially associated to overprescribing, were the lack of knowledge of RTIs and antibiotics (41% of 1029 parents indicated bacteria as a possible cause of common cold), and the propensity to seek medical care for trivial infections (48% of 4352 children accessing ambulatory practice presented only symptoms of common cold).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>A wide gap between perceived and real determinants of antibiotic prescription exists. This can promote antibiotic overuse. Inadequate parental knowledge can also induce inappropriate prescription. The value of this study is that it simultaneously explored determinants of antimicrobial prescribing in an entire region involving both professionals and parents.</p

Body fat mass and the proportion of very large adipocytes in pregnant women are associated with gestational insulin resistance.

Pregnancy is accompanied by fat gain and insulin resistance. Changes in adipose tissue morphology and function during pregnancy and factors contributing to gestational insulin resistance are incompletely known. We sought to characterize adipose tissue in trimesters 1 and 3 (T1/T3) in normal weight (NW) and obese pregnant women, and identify adipose tissue-related factors associated with gestational insulin resistance

Analisis Kompetensi Individu dan Keadilan Organisasional Terhadap Kepuasan Kerja dan Kinerja Pegawai (Studi Empiris Kantor BPKAD Provinsi Papua Barat)

This research aims to analyze the influence of individual competence and organizational justice on job satisfaction and employee performance. Data collection is through distributing questionnaires. The research sample was 48 people, using a saturated sampling technique. Meanwhile, this research uses path analysis and descriptive analysis. The research results show that: 1) Individual competency and Organizational Justice have a positive and significant effect on job satisfaction; 2) Individual competency and Organizational Justice have a positive and significant effect on employee performance; 3) Job satisfaction has a positive and significant effect on employee performance. 4) Job satisfaction is able to mediate the influence of individual competence on employee performance. 5) Satisfaction is not able to mediate the influence of organizational justice on employee performance. The Head of BPKAD needs to improve individual competence and organizational justice so that it can create job satisfaction which has an impact on improving performance

Pengaruh Alat Permainan Edukatif Kereta Musik terhadap Perkembangan Bahasa Anak Usia 5-6 Tahun

Train educational game music is a game of playing musical instruments such as tambourines, harps, saron, maracas, and guitars in the form of train cars which are varied with songs. This study aims to determine the effect of the musical train educational game media on the language development of children aged 5-6 years. The research method used is a quantitative method. The subjects in this research trial were five children aged 5-6 years and 30 PAUD teachers. The results of trials conducted on five children aged 5-6 years, namely before the trial was 26% and increased to 91% after the media trial train educational game. music. This shows that the train educational game music can improve language development and early reading skills of children aged 5-6 years. The validation results from material experts are 90%, media experts are 75%, and the feasibility assessment of 30 PAUD teachers is 93%. From this research, it shows that the train educational game tool music that has been tested on a small scale is valid and feasible. It shows the train game music is effective and has an effect on children's language development and can be applied and has an attraction for early childhood in learning