Tuberculosis is a global health problem that causes the death of approximately 1.5 million people worldwide each year (WHO, p. 1-126, Global Tuberculosis Report, 2015). Treatment of drug-susceptible tuberculosis requires combination antimicrobial therapy with a minimum of four antimicrobial agents applied over the course of 6 months. The first instance of combination antimicrobial therapy appli...

INTRODUCTION Antimicrobial prescribing in the emergency department is predominantly empiric, with final microbiology results either unavailable or reported after most patients are discharged home. Systematic follow-up processes are needed to ensure appropriate antimicrobial therapy at this transition of care. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of a culture follow-up (CFU) prog...

The objective of this study was to describe the influence of in-feed and therapeutic antimicrobials on resistance in commensal fecal Escherichia coli isolated from preweaned calves. Four groups of 30, day-old calf-ranch calves were enrolled and raised until 4 weeks of age. Groups 1 to 3 were raised without antimicrobials in the feed. Group 1 was isolated from the other groups and received no an...

OBJECTIVES Enterococci are an important cause of nosocomial and community-acquired infections, with bacteraemia being one of the most common presentations. Although inappropriate antimicrobial therapy has been associated with poorer outcomes in Enterococcus faecalis (EF) bacteraemia, the impact of antimicrobial choice, namely β-lactam versus glycopeptide therapy, has not been well described. We...

OBJECTIVES Catheter-related Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia (CRSAB) occasionally persists despite catheter removal and initiation of appropriate antimicrobial therapy. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence, risk factors, and outcomes of persistent CRSAB after catheter removal and initiation of antimicrobial therapy. METHODS Consecutive patients with CRSAB were prospectively in...

BACKGROUND Treatment of septic shock relies on appropriate antimicrobial therapy. Current culture based methods deliver final results after days, which may delay potentially lifesaving adjustments in antimicrobial therapy. This study was undertaken to compare PCR with blood culture results under routine conditions regarding 1. impact on antimicrobial therapy, and 2. time to result, in patients ...

OBJECTIVE Rising incidence of Clostridium difficile and multidrug-resistant organisms' infections and a dwindling development of new antimicrobials are an impetus for antimicrobial stewardship in organ transplant recipients. We sought to understand antimicrobial prescribing practices and identify opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration among the transplant, antimicrobial stewardship, ...

Hospital-acquired vancomycin-resistant enterococcal bacteremia has been associated with increased hospital costs, length of stay, and mortality. The peptide nucleic acid fluorescent in situ hybridization (PNA FISH) test for Enterococcus faecalis and other enterococci (EFOE) is a multicolor probe that differentiates E. faecalis from other enterococcal species within 3 h directly from blood cultu...

Antimicrobial therapy can increase the colonization density of gastrointestinal vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE). Among previously VRE-colonized patients, we evaluated VRE colonization before and after initiation of antimicrobial therapy by means of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and culture. Perianal swab samples were obtained at admission to the hospital and after receipt of antimicrob...