Is the World Health Organization Multimodal Hand Hygiene Improvement Strategy applicable and effective at the primary care level in resource-limited settings? A quantitative assessment in healthcare centers of Faranah, Guinea.

Background: The World Health Organization Multimodal Hand Hygiene Improvement Strategy aims at reducing healthcare-associated infections; however, evidence of applicability and effectiveness at the primary care level is scarce, especially in healthcare centers in resource-limited settings. The objectives of this study were to improve hand hygiene knowledge and compliance at two healthcare centers in the region of Faranah, Guinea, to increase the availability of alcohol-based hand rub (ABHR), and to assess the effectiveness of the strategy at the primary care level. Methods: Knowledge, perceptions, and compliance were assessed prior to the intervention and compared to those of two follow-up assessments, immediately and 6 months after the intervention. The intervention consisted of training and the supply of ABHR. The monthly consumption of ABHR was monitored. Results: Baseline knowledge increased from a score of 11/25 at baseline to 16/25 at first follow-up; it then decreased to 15/25 at the second follow-up. Compliance showed an increase from 15.6% to 84.4% (P < 0.001) at the first follow-up. At the second follow-up, compliance was lower than at the first follow-up (53.2%, P < 0.001), but still more than two times higher than at baseline (P < 0.001). ABHR consumption averaged 0.77 ml per consultation. Conclusions: The World Health Organization hand hygiene strategy is an appropriate method to improve compliance and knowledge at the primary care level, but needs some adjustment: the inclusion of observation of the correctness of hand hygiene action, as well as training emphasizing the amount of ABHR to use.

Fungal infections: Pathogenesis, antifungals and alternate treatment approaches.

Increasing incidence of fungal infections of recent times requires immediate intervention. Fungal infections are seldom construed at initial stages that intensify the severity of infections and complicate the treatment procedures. Fungal pathogens employ various mechanisms to evade the host immune system and to progress the severity of infections. For the treatment of diverse superficial and systemic infections, antifungal drugs from the available repertoire are administered. However, well documented evidence of fungal resistance to most of the antifungal drugs hampers disease control and poses challenges in antifungal therapy. Several physiological adaptations and genetic mutations followed by their selection in presence of antifungal agents drive the resistance development in fungi. The availability of limited antifungal arsenal, emergence of resistance and biofilm-conferred resistance drives the need for development of novel drugs and alternate approaches for the better treatment outcome against mycoses. This graphical review explicitly shed light on various fungal infections and causative organisms, pathogenesis, different antifungal drugs and resistance mechanisms including host immune response and evasion strategies. Here, we have highlighted recent developments on novel antifungal agents and other alternate approaches for fighting against fungal infections.