A Retrospective Analysis of Anaerobic Bacteria Isolated in 236 Cases of Pleural Empyema and their Prevalance of Antimicrobial Resistance in Turkey.

BACKGROUND: Parapneumonic effusions usually occur secondary to an infection and produce pus (empyema) that accumulates in the pleural space. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of anerobes in patients with empyema and to assess their resistance patterns for seven antimicrobials. METHODS: Pleural fluid specimens from 236 patients were inoculated on Schaedler agar. Anaerobic bacteria were identified via API 20 A. Susceptibility testing for penicillin, ampicillin + sulbactam, amoxicillin + clavulanate, cefoxitin, clindamycin, metronidazole, and imipenem were performed with the E-test. RESULTS: There were 118 anaerobic bacterial strains detected in 66 (27.9%) of the 236 specimens. Gram-positive anaerobic cocci were detected in 54.23% and the predominant cocci were 41 Peptostreptococcus spp, (34.75%) followed by 17 P. acnes (14.41%) and 6 C. tertium (5.08%). The Gram-negative anaerobes were B. fragilis (28, 23.73%), P. melaninogenica (8, 6.78%), P. intermedia (4, 3.39%), F. nucleatum (6, 5.08%), F. mortiferum (5, 4.24%), and P. asaccharolytica (3, 2.54%). All anaerobic strains were susceptible to ampicillin + sulbactam, amoxicillin + clavulanate, and imipenem. The highest MIC was found to be > 256 µg/mL for penicillin in B. fragilis strains, 128 µg/mL for cefoxitin in P. melaninogenica strains, 32 µg/mL for clindamycin and 64 µg/mL for metronidazole in P. acnes strains. Clindamycin resistance was detected in 46.6% B. fragilis, and 17.6% for P. acnes. Thirty-eight (32.2%) strains produced beta-lactamase. CONCLUSIONS: The use of antimicrobial agents for thoracic empyema should be based on the isolated pathogens and their resistance profiles. Clinicians should be aware of the wide diversity of anaerobic genera and species in cases of pleural empyema.

Predicting Value of Serum Procalcitonin, C-Reactive Protein, Drain Fluid Culture, Drain Fluid Interleukin-6, and Tumor Necrosis Factor-α Levels in Anastomotic Leakage after Rectal Resection.

BACKGROUND: Anastomotic leak is the most dreaded septic complication of colorectal surgical procedures. Death is proportional to the time between occurrence and diagnosis of the leakage. Biomarkers, which may help to predict anastomotic leakage before appearance of its clinical features, may be beneficial in preventing adverse outcomes. This study investigates a biomarker that might be useful to predict rectal anastomotic leakage before its clinical presentation. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Serum procalcitonin and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels, bacterial proliferation, interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) levels of drain fluid were evaluated in 50 consecutive patients who underwent low anterior resection without diverting ostomy for rectal carcinoma. RESULTS: Anastomotic leakage occurred in seven of 50 (14%) patients. Serum CRP and procalcitonin levels at post-operative day three were higher in patients with anastomotic leakage (p = 0.01, p = 0.02 respectively). Drain TNF-α values were increased 63.2% on post-operative day five when compared with post-operative day three in patients with anastomotic leakage, but were decreased in patients without leakage. There was no statistical difference for drain IL-6 levels between groups. The bacterial proliferation rate of drain fluid culture in the leakage group was 42.9% at post-operative day three and 85.7% at post-operative day five (p = 0.29 and p = 0.0001, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: High serum CRP and procalcitonin values on post-operative day three are alarming, and assessment of anastomotic leakage by abdominal imaging with rectal contrast is suggested. In addition, increasing levels of TNF-α and bacterial proliferation in drain fluid are predictive, whereas IL-6 is not.

Risk factors for intensive care need in children with bronchiolitis: A case-control study.

Bronchiolitis is the most common cause of lower respiratory tract infection and hospitalization in infancy and some of the patients may require admission to Intensive Care Unit (ICU) due to severe form of the disease. The aim of this study was to determine the risk factors for ICU need. The study group was composed of 30 patients admitted to ICU with the diagnosis of bronchiolitis and 30 bronchiolitis patients that were treated in the regular ward at the same period were enrolled to the study as the control group. Clinical characteristics, laboratory and imaging data were collected and compared statistically. The mean age of the patients was 33.6±24.4 days and 202.8±179.8 days in the study and control groups respectively, p < 0.001. The presence of tachypnea at admission (96% of patient group and 70% of control group; p=0.01), having oxygen saturation less than 92% (100% of patient group and 27% of control group; p < 0.001), having radiological findings of bronchopneumonia and positive result for respiratory syncytial virus were also found to be significantly different in the study and control groups (p < 0.05).

The relationship between bifidobacteria and allergic asthma and/or allergic dermatitis: a prospective study of 0-3 years-old children in Turkey.

Bifidobacteria are beneficial bacteria for humans. These bacteria are particularly effective at protecting against infectious diseases and modulating the immune response. It was shown that in newborns, the fecal distribution of the colonizing Bifidobacterium species influences the prevalence of allergic diseases. This study aimed to compare the faecal Bifidobacterium species of allergic children to those of healthy children to detect species level differences in faecal distribution. Stool samples were obtained from 99 children between 0 and 3 years of age whose clinical symptoms and laboratory reports were compatible with atopic dermatitis and allergic asthma. Samples were also obtained from 102 healthy children who were similar to the case group with respect to age and sex. Bifidobacteria were isolated by culture and identified at the genus level by API 20 A. In addition, 7 unique species-specific primers were used for the molecular characterization of bifidobacteria. The McNemar test was used for statistical analyses, and p < 0.05 was accepted as significant. Bifidobacterium longum was detected in 11 (11.1%) of the allergic children and in 31 (30.3%) of the healthy children. Statistical analysis revealed a significant difference in the prevalence of B. longum between these two groups (X(2): 11.2, p < 0.001). However, no significant differences in the prevalence of other Bifidobacterium species were found between faecal samples from healthy and allergic children. (p > 0.05). The significant difference in the isolation of B. longum from our study groups suggests that this species favors the host by preventing the development of asthma and allergic dermatitis. Based on these results, we propose that the production of probiotics in accordance with country-specific Bifidobacterium species densities would improve public health. Thus, country-specific prospective case-control studies that collect broad data sets are needed.