Validating a clinical prediction score for Legionella-related community acquired pneumonia.

BACKGROUND: Legionella-related community acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a disease with an increasing incidence and a high mortality rate, especially if empirical antibiotic therapy is inadequate. Antibiotic treatment highly relies on clinical symptoms, although proven non-specific, because currently available diagnostic techniques provide insufficient accuracy for detecting Legionella CAP on admission. This study validates a diagnostic scoring system for detection of Legionella-related CAP, based on six items on admission (Legionella prediction score). METHODS: We included patients with Legionella-related CAP admitted to five large Dutch hospitals between 2006 and 2016. Controls were non-Legionella-related CAP patients. The following six conditions were rewarded one point if present: fever > 39.4 °C; dry cough; hyponatremia (sodium) < 133 mmol/L; lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) > 225 mmol/L; C-reactive protein (CRP) > 187 mg/L and platelet count < 171 × 109/L. The accuracy of the prediction score was assessed by calculating the area under the curve (AUC) through logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: We included 131 cases and 160 controls. A score of 0 occurred in non-Legionella-related CAP patients only, a score of 5 and 6 in Legionella-related CAP patients only. A cut-off ≥ 4 resulted in a sensitivity of 58.8% and a specificity of 93.1%. The AUC was 0.89 (95% CI 0.86-0.93). The strongest predictors were elevated LDH, elevated CRP and hyponatremia. CONCLUSIONS: This multi-centre study validates the Legionella prediction score, an easily applicable diagnostic scoring system, in a large group of patients and finds high diagnostic accuracy. The score shows promise for future prospective validation and could contribute to targeted antibiotic treatment of suspected Legionella CAP.

Dapagliflozin for prednisone-induced hyperglycaemia in acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The aim of the present study was to compare the effectiveness and safety of add-on treatment with dapagliflozin to placebo in patients with prednisone-induced hyperglycaemia during treatment for acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD). We enrolled 46 patients hospitalized for an AECOPD in a multicentre double-blind randomized controlled study in which add-on treatment with dapagliflozin 10 mg was compared with placebo. Glycaemic control and incidence of hypoglycaemia were measured through a blinded subcutaneous continuous glucose monitoring device. Participants in the dapagliflozin group spent 54 ± 27.7% of the time in target range (3.9-10 mmol/L) and participants in the placebo group spent 53.6 ± 23.4% of the time in target range (P = .96). The mean glucose concentration was 10.1 mmol/L in the dapagliflozin group and 10.4 mmol/L in the placebo group (P = .66). One participant using dapagliflozin and 2 participants using placebo experienced symptomatic hypoglycaemia. Treatment with dapagliflozin was safe and there was no difference in risk of hypoglycaemia compared with placebo. Dapagliflozin did not result in better glycaemic control compared with placebo in participants with prednisone-induced hyperglycaemia during AECOPD.

Bilateral pleural effusion in a HIV negative patient - TB or not TB?

Pleural tuberculosis is an infrequent cause of respiratory illness in Europe and usually presents unilaterally. We present the case of a young, immunocompetent sailor from the Phillippines, who presented with bilateral pleural fluid caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in the Netherlands. In addition challenges in the diagnostic process are discussed.

Isoniazid and rifampicin resistance-associated mutations in Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates from Yangon, Myanmar: implications for rapid molecular testing.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the frequency and nature of mutations in genes associated with resistance to rifampicin and isoniazid in Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates collected from Yangon, Myanmar. METHODS: Ninety-six isoniazid-resistant M. tuberculosis isolates, including 29 multidrug-resistant isolates, were analysed for mutations in the rpoB, katG, inhA, oxyR and ahpC genes. RESULTS: Mutations in the rpoB gene were detected in 25 (86.2%) of the 29 rifampicin-resistant isolates. Of the 96 isoniazid-resistant isolates, 61 (63.5%) had mutations in codon 315 of the catalase-peroxidase-encoding gene (katG). Mutations in codon 315 were observed at a higher frequency in the multidrug-resistant isolates than in the isoniazid-resistant isolates (86.2% versus 53.7%, respectively, P = 0.003). Mutations in the oxyR-ahpC promoter region and in the inhA gene were observed in 14.6% and 2.1% of the isolates, respectively. Genotyping performed on the 96 M. tuberculosis isolates revealed a total of 94 different genotyping patterns. A distinct genotypic pattern was found in 92 isolates, whereas 4 isolates belonged to two clusters with identical genotypes, suggesting that the majority of the isolates were not from an outbreak of a single drug-resistant clone. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides the first molecular characterization of isoniazid- and rifampicin-resistant M. tuberculosis isolates from Myanmar and gives information on the molecular basis for rifampicin and isoniazid drug resistance in M. tuberculosis. The study generates useful information for the development of potential rapid molecular drug susceptibility tests.