Unveiling the Menace of Serratia fonticola: Rising Pathogenic Threat or Bystander?

A rare human pathogen, Serratia fonticola (S. fonticola) has previously been found to cause skin and soft tissue infections post-trauma. The literature contains limited information regarding its management or sensitivity patterns. We aim to share our findings on S. fonticola infections in an area with a high rate of antibiotic resistance. To draw attention to this uncommon and rare infection, we share a case series of S. fonticola. The antibiogram revealed that S. fonticola in all our cases was multidrug resistant. Two of our five cases had a prior history of road traffic accidents and yielded polymicrobial infections along with S. fonticola. The other two were revived successfully with proper antibiotic treatment, though one had glucose-6-phosphate deficiency (G6PD) and the last one was a neonate with pulmonary hypertension who grew S. fonticola in blood culture.

Sepsis Due to Achromobacter xylosoxidans in a Tertiary Care Centre: Case Series.

Achromobacter xylosoxidans, also known as Alcaligenes xylosoxidans, is a low-virulence, non-fermenter gram-negative bacillus mainly found in marine environments. We report a detailed series of four high-risk cases of septicemia with the common variable of positive blood cultures for A. xylosoxidans. All four blood isolates were multi-drug resistant and susceptible to meropenem and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole. Two patients responded well to the treatment with meropenem and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and two patients died. It should never be assumed that Achromobacter is a contaminant even though it is relatively infrequently isolated from clinical samples. This infection can progress to fatal bacteremia, even in otherwise healthy people, and it can potentially cause severe conditions in premature infants. With only a limited number of antibiotics demonstrating bactericidal properties, the possibility of failure in empirical treatment is significant. As a result, it is important to have a precise comprehension of this uncommon yet deadly illness in order to increase the probability of successful treatment.

Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection (CAUTI).

One of the most prevalent health-related illnesses globally is catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI). CAUTIs account for almost half of all hospital-acquired diseases. Most of the healthcare-acquired urinary tract infections result from catheter tubes implantation. These tubes connect a collecting system and the urinary bladder via the urethra. These are known as indwelling urinary catheters. The length of catheterization has a key role in starting bacteriuria since biofilm eventually forms on all of these devices. Despite the low percentage of people with bacteriuria who start showing symptoms, there is nevertheless a significant burden associated with these contamination due to the repeated use of indwelling urinary devices. Minimizing indwelling device usage and stopping the catheter as soon as medically possible are the two most crucial preventative measures for bacteriuria and infection when device use is required. Efforts to avoid catheter-acquired urinary infections must be implemented and monitored by infection control guidelines in healthcare institutions. These approaches include monitoring device use, the suitability of device justifications, and problems. Ultimately, technological advancements in device substances that inhibit colony generation will be necessary to avoid these infestations. There is still some way by which we can bring down the increased phenomenon of catheter-associated urinary tract contamination by maintaining hygiene while handling the catheter and patients and keeping the infected patients away or isolated from unaffected patients as a precaution. This article mainly focuses on an overview that helps with discussing prevention, risk factors, diagnosis, control and management of CAUTI.

Post-Transfusion Simultaneous Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura and Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome: A Rare Occurrence.

Endothelial cell injury, intravascular platelet-fibrin thrombi, and vascular damage are found in hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP). The two disorders frequently manifest independently and are the important causes of acute renal damage. Acute kidney injury developed in our patient after blood transfusion and later on, the patient developed neurological complications. The patient was managed symptomatically and conservatively. Plasmapheresis and corticosteroid administration showed improved results.

Infectious causes of acute encephalitis syndrome hospitalizations in Central India, 2018-20.

BACKGROUND: We enhanced surveillance of hospitalizations of all ages for acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) along with infectious aetiologies, including the Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV). METHODS: From October 2018 to September 2020, we screened neurological patients for AES in all age groups in Maharashtra and Telangana States. AES cases were enrolled at study hospitals along with other referrals and sampled with cerebrospinal fluid, acute and convalescent sera. We tested specimens for non-viral aetiologies viz. leptospirosis, typhoid, scrub typhus, malaria and acute bacterial meningitis, along with viruses - JEV, Dengue virus (DENV), Chikungunya virus (CHIKV), Chandipura virus (CHPV) and Herpes simplex virus (HSV). RESULTS: Among 4977 neurological hospitalizations at three study site hospitals over two years period, 857 (17.2%) were AES. However, only 287 (33.5%) AES cases were eligible. Among 278 (96.9%) enrolled AES cases, infectious aetiologies were identified in 115 (41.4%) cases, including non-viral in 17 (6.1%) cases - leptospirosis (8), scrub-typhus (3) and typhoid (6); and viral in 98 (35.3%) cases - JEV (58, 20.9%), HSV (22, 7.9%), DENV (15, 5.4%) and CHPV (3, 1.1%). JEV confirmation was significantly higher in enrolled cases than referred cases (10.2%) (p < 0.05). However, the contribution of JEV in AES cases was similar in both children and adults. JE was reported year-round and from adjacent non-endemic districts. CONCLUSIONS: The Japanese encephalitis virus continues to be the leading cause of acute encephalitis syndrome in central India despite vaccination among children. Surveillance needs to be strengthened along with advanced diagnostic testing for assessing the impact of vaccination.