[Guidelines for treatment of pneumonia in intensive care units]. / Linee guida per il trattamento delle polmoniti acquisite in comunita, in ospedale o associate a ventilazione ricoverate in Terapia Intensiva.

Patients affected by pneumonia can be admitted in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) independently by the setting where the infection has been acquired (community, hospital, long-term care facilities); even more frequently pneumonia can develop in patients already hospitalized in ICU especially in those requiring mechanical ventilation for different reasons. Within the severe community acquired pneumonia requiring admission in ICU, the most frequently responsible micro-organisms are mainly represented by Streptococcus pneumoniae, but also by Legionella and Haemophilus. Pseudomonas aeruginona, anyway, cannot be excluded. The most recent Canadian and American guidelines for treatment of the above mentioned infections suggest the use of a combination therapy with beta-lactams (ceftriaxone, cefotaxime, ampicillin/sulbactam, piperacillin/tazobactam) and a new generation macrolide or respiratory fluoroquinolone. In case of allergy to beta-lactams, the association fluoroquinolone-clindamycin should be preferred. Whenever a Pseudomonas etiology is suspected because of the presence of risk factors such as COPD, cystic fibrosis, bronchiectasis, previous and/or frequent therapies with antibiotics and/or steroids, the same guidelines suggest the use of an anti-pseudomonas beta-lactam (such as piperacillin/tazobactam, carbapenems, cefepime) associated with an anti-pseudomonas fluoroquinolone (high doses ciprofloxacin). An anti-pseudomonas beta-lactam plus an aminoglycoside or aminoglicosyde plus fluoroquinolone can be an alternative. Early onset Hospital Acquired Pneumonia (HAP) and early onset Ventilator Associated Pneumonia (VAP) in patients without risk factors for multi-resistant etiological agents are generally sustained by S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae, methicillin-susceptible Staphylocccus aureus e Gram negative enteric rods. These infections can be treated with one of the following antibiotics: ceftriaxone or fluoroquinolones (moxifloxacin or ciprofloxacin or levofloxacin) or ampicillin/sulbactam or ertapenem. Late onset VAP and HAP in patients with risk factors for multi-resistant, by contrast, should be treated with a combination therapy: in case of defined or suspected P. aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae (ESbL+), Acinetobacter sp etiology, it is required the use of an anti-pseudomonas cephalosporin or an anti-pseudomonas carbapenem or b-lactam + beta-lactamase inhibitor associated with an anti-pseudomonas fluoroquinolone or an aminoglicoside. The possible presence of MRSA or Legionella pneumophila suggests the use of anti-Gram positive antibiotics such as glycopeptides or linezolid. These quidelines confirm the role of ciprofloxacin combined with beta-lactams whenever P. aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae (ESbL+), Acinetobacter sp. etiology is suspected.

Sternal osteomyelitis due to Aspergillus fumigatus after cardiac surgery.

Sternal osteomyelitis due to Aspergillus fumigatus after cardiac surgery occurred in two nonimmunosuppressed patients. The clinical features of the infection were markedly different in the two cases. In the first patient, sepsis showed a late and insidious onset followed by slow progression. In the second case, fungi were isolated from wound swabs within a few days of surgery and the clinical picture showed acute onset and rapid progression. Only a few cases of sternal osteomyelitis due to Aspergillus have been described previously after cardiac surgery. Aspergillus infection should be considered in the differential diagnosis of mediastinitis after cardiac surgery, especially in a clinical setting of otherwise unexplained sepsis or nonhealing wound despite apparently adequate treatment.

Pulmonary thromboendarterectomy in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension: hemodynamic characteristics and changes.

OBJECTIVE: To see whether degree of pulmonary hypertension or severity of cardiac failure affect the success of pulmonary thromboendarterectomy (PTE) in chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension. METHODS: From May 1996 to June 1999, 33 patients, all in New York Heart Association (NYHA) class 3 or 4 were treated with PTE. Preoperative hemodynamic values were: central venous pressure (CVP) 8+/-6 (1-23), mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) 50+/-10 (30-69), cardiac output (CO) 3.3+/-0.9 (1.8-5.2), pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) 1056+/-344 (523-1659), and right ventricle ejection fraction (RVEF) 12+/-5 (5-21). To establish whether some hemodynamic or cardiac variables correlate with surgical failure (early death or functional non-success), these patients were divided into a low risk or a high risk group for each variable: CVP (<9 or > or =9), mPAP (<50 or > or =50), CO (> or =3.5 or <3.5), PVR (> or =1100 or <1100), and RVEF (> or = 10 or <10). The duration of 3-4 NYHA class period (<24 or > or = 24 months) was also included in the study. RESULTS: Three patients (9. 1%) died in hospital, one (3.0%) underwent lung transplant shortly after PTE, and in five cases (15.2%) mPAP and PVR at the 3-month follow-up examination corresponded with our definition of functional nonsuccess (mPAP and PVR decreased by less than 40% of preoperative values). One of the five functional nonsuccess patients underwent lung transplant 3 months after the operation and another died 17 months after the operation from a non-related cause. Thus PTE was successful in 24 patients and unsuccessful in nine. None of the hemodynamic variables considered was found to be associated with the disparate outcomes. At the 3-month examination, all surviving patients were in NYHA class 1 or 2 except for three in NYHA class 3. At 2 years, hemodynamic values were: CVP 2+/-2 (0-4), mPAP 16+/-3 (12-21), CO 5.0+/-1.0 (3.4-6.5), PVR 182+/-51 (112-282), and RVEF 35+/-5 (26-40). All differences were significant with respect to baseline values (P<0.001). Preoperative mPAP and RVEF values had a strict linear correlation (R=0.45; P=0.014). CONCLUSIONS: None of the variables considered was correlated with early death or functional nonsuccess. Neither preoperative severity of pulmonary hypertension nor degree of cardiac failure influenced the outcome of the operation. PTE leads to hemodynamic recovery even in very compromised patients.

Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in an Italian intensive care unit: clinical and therapeutical remarks.

In this study we evaluated the prevalence of Enterobacteriaceae and the epidemiology of ESBL+ microorganisms in an ICU of our Institution over a 5-year period and analyzed the clinical features and outcomes of the infections caused by these microorganisms. The most frequent ESBL+ isolate was Proteus mirabilis (69 isolates, 58%); a high rate of positive results in the double-disk synergy test (DDS) was also recognized for Klebsiella pneumoniae (52 isolates, 51%), whereas this phenomenon was observed less frequently in other species. In 312 cases the isolated microorganism was considered to be the cause of infection; we documented 103 wound infections, 89 UTIs, 62 LRTIs, 30 primary bacteremias, 27 infections of indwelling catheters and 1 CNS infection. The overall mortality rate due to ESBL+ strains was 1%, compared with 10.6% rate caused by ESBL-negative Enterobacteriaceae. This could be explained because ESBL+ strains caused mostly localized infections (wound infections and UTIs), whereas systemic or severe infections were sustained by ESBL-negative strains, and therapy with carbapenems was started promptly after ESBL+ isolation (always within 24h after strain isolation).

Typing of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strains from an intensive care unit by random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD).

The identification and control of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is of primary concern in intensive care units (ICUs) worldwide. The introduction and circulation of particular strains is best studied by genomic procedures and random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) is well suited for this task. In this study 14 isolates of MRSA, obtained over an 8 month period from the blood cultures of 12 patients in an ICU at our hospital, were typed by RAPD method using seven primers. Three separate groups were distinguished and clustering of certain types in time and space was noted. These results suggest that although different strains of MRSA were involved in this outbreak, cross-infection with individual types occurred. RAPD fingerprinting is a relatively simple method that allows epidemiologic investigation of MRSA outbreaks in hospital infection.

[Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in an intensive care unit: a one-year survey]. / Colonizzazioni e infezioni da Staphylococcus aureus meticillino-resistente (SAMR) in una terapia intensiva polivalente: analisi su un anno di osservazione.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is frequently isolated in nosocomial outbreaks. In our study, we analysed the occurrence of colonisation and infection in an Intensive Care Unit of our hospital during a 12-month period. We also evaluated the possibility of using automated ribotyping as a molecular method in order to type the isolates. Twice a week a nasal swab and a rectal swab were performed on all patients; from ventilator-assisted patients, a sputum culture was also taken. All the MRSA isolated were identified by using commonly phenotypic procedures and on all isolates susceptibility tests were performed. An automated ribotyping using EcoRI was also done. Out of 292 patients enrolled in the study, 205 were never colonised (group N); among the other 87 who were colonised by MRSA (29.8%), 40 patients (group A) were MRSA carriers at the time of admission, while 47 (group B) were colonised in the ICU. Twenty-seven patients (11 from group A, 15 from group B and 1 from group N) developed 31 infections due to MRSA. Patients from group A exhibited, as a rule, worse clinical conditions than those from the other two groups. For the former group, MRSA infection was frequently systemic (sepsis), while in group B pneumonia was the predominant infection. The prevalence of colonisations in our study was 30%, which is a value comparable to those presented by other authors in similar cases. MRSA colonisation is a necessary condition for subsequent infections in almost all cases, with an average lag of 7 days. Susceptibility tests were non-discriminating among the isolates: all the strains were susceptible to glycopeptides; nearly all of them were resistant to erythromycin, clindamycin, ciprofloxacin and gentamicin. Automated ribotyping allowed us to distinguish 12 different ribogroups, the most frequent of which was composed of 146 isolates. In our study, this molecular method was able to define a possible endemic clone that should be better investigated by using methods with a higher discriminatory power, such as RAPD or PFGE. The method that we employed is highly reliable, easy to perform and not time-consuming. In our opinion, it could be the method of choice in the first screening of high numbers of isolates.

[Management and prevention of catheter-associated urinary tract infections: current opinions and clinical practice]. / Gestione e prevenzionedelle infezioni delle vieurinarie associate a catetere:opinioni e pratica clinica.

Catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CA-UTI) is an important epidemiological event in the hospital setting as urethral catheterization has a profound impact in terms of local and systemic extension, mortality rate, prolonged length of stay and costs, other than representing a reservoir of multi-resistant bacterial pathogens. All these issues make it mandatory to set up effective prevention measures. Any initiative able to prevent or reduce incidence of catheter-associated UTI and possible complications should be encouraged. In this context, an important role could be played by innovative catheters coated with noble metal alloy and hydrogel. Results from this consensus may prove useful as a guide for the management and prevention of CA-UTIs in Italy and elsewhere, and may also provide a basis for comparison with other studies.

Severe outcome of influenza A/H1N1/09v infection associated with 222G/N polymorphisms in the haemagglutinin: a multicentre study.

In a multicentre study, influenza A/H1N1/09v 222G/N variants were more frequently detected in patients admitted to the intensive-care unit for invasive mechanical ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (10/23; 43.5%) than in patients hospitalized in other units (2/27; 7.4%) and community patients (0/81; 0.0%) (p <0.01). A significantly higher virus load (p 0.02) in the lower vs the upper respiratory tract was observed. Predominance of 222G/N variants in the lower respiratory tract (40% of total virus population) vs the upper respiratory tract (10%) was shown by clonal analysis of haemagglutinin sequences in paired nasal swab and bronchoalveolar lavage samples. The time from illness onset to sampling was significantly longer in patients with severe infection vs community patients (p <0.001). It was concluded that the 222G/N variants showed increased virulence; mutant variants were probably selected in individual patients; and the longer duration of illness might have favoured the emergence of adaptive mutations through multiple replication cycles.

Clinical diagnosis of intra-abdominal infections.

Abdominal sepsis results in high morbidity and mortality. Intra-abdominal infectious complications are one of the most common infectious pathologies seen in critically ill patients. Approximately 30% of patients admitted to an ICU with intra-abdominal infection succumb to their illness, and when peritonitis arises as a complication of a previous surgical procedure, or recurs during ICU admission, mortality rates exceed 50%. Thus early detection and treatment are essential to minimize patient complications.Critically ill patients are often clinically unevaluable due to distracting injuries, respiratory failure, obtundation, or other pathology. even when patients can be examined, the clinical exam is frequently unreliable and/or misleading. the diagnostic approach to identifying abdominal problems will differ, depending upon the hemodynamic stability of the patient. Patients who have low systolic blood pressures, who are pressor-dependent, may be too unstable to undergo analyses that require trips away from the ICU or emergency department. intra-abdominal pathology may be detected by ultrasound or diagnostic peritoneal lavage. When critically ill patients are stable enough to undergo some diagnostic evaluation of their abdomen, the approach is somewhat simpler. Overall, computerized tomography (CT) is the imaging modality of choice for most intra-abdominal processes. for diagnosis of intra-abdominal conditions using CT scanning it is optimal if patients receive both oral and intravenous contrast. An exception to the use of CT scanning is evaluation of suspected biliary pathology, which is best imaged by ultrasound. it will identify calculous and acalculous cholecystitis and may show changes in the gallbladder or common bile duct associated with biliary obstruction.

Bacillus cereus fatal bacteremia and apparent association with nosocomial transmission in an intensive care unit.

Bacillus cereus has sometimes been implicated in food poisoning and in opportunistic infections of seriously ill patients. This report describes an unusual case of persistent bacteremia and multiple organ failure associated with B. cereus in a patient admitted to our institution for lung cancer. The patient was undergoing treatment with an antimicrobial agent (imipenem) that was shown to be effective against the micro-organism in vitro. No portal of entry for the strain was detected. After treatment with vancomycin, also shown to be effective in vitro, no clinical improvement was noted and the patient died. Molecular studies showed that the same strain caused an episode of pseudobacteremia in another patient admitted to the same ICU room.

[Severe infection from invasive beta-hemolytic streptococcus group A. Three cases of toxic shock observed in resuscitation]. / Infezioni invasive gravi da streptococco beta emolitico di gruppo A. A proposito di 3 casi di shock tossiemico osservati in rianimazione.

Group A streptococci (GAS) may cause a variety of infections, some of which are severe and may be life-threatening. Patients affected by severe invasive GAS infections may develop, early in the course of the infection, a syndrome characterized by circulatory insufficiency with multiple organ failure: Streptococcal Toxic Shock-Like syndrome (Strep-TSLS). The presence of shock and organ failure differentiate it from other types of invasive GAS infections. Three cases patients presenting with the Strep-TSLS, over a period of 16 months in our multidisciplinary 10-bed ICU are described. The Strep-TSLS was of nosocomial origin in the first case, due to poststernotomy wound infection, caused from erysipela in the second patient, and associated to a puerperal sepsis in the third case, respectively. In this small series the primary sources of streptococcal infection associated with the syndrome are confirmed to be in soft tissues and skin. One patient died early after the admission to the ICU, whereas the other two patients completely recovered with appropriate antibiotic and supportive treatment although early diagnosis and radical operative debridement may have been conclusive in one case. All 3 observed cases fulfilled the consensus case definition of "certain case of Strep-TSLS", whose criteria have been recently revised.

Catheter-related bacteremia due to Lactobacillus rhamnosus in a single-lung transplant recipient.

There is still a major debate about the pathogenicity of Lactobacillus spp. and some reports emphasize that these microorganisms are never isolated from endovascular devices. In this report we present a case of catheter-related bacteremia due to L. rhamnosus in a patient who underwent a single-lung transplant.