Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America
-
Since the discovery of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), the number of emergency department visits for skin and soft-tissue infection (SSTI) has increased, and one report suggested an increase in the much larger setting of physicians' offices. Dermatitis compromises the cutaneous barrier to microorganisms and may predispose to SSTI. Our objectives were to determine whether office visits for dermatitis or SSTI have become more frequent since the emergence of community-associated MRSA, to describe the age-specific frequency of visits for dermatitis and SSTI, and to determine whether dermatitis is associated with SSTI and whether the association strengthened over time. ⋯ The rate of office visits for dermatitis or SSTI did not increase from 1993 through 2005. Dermatitis was associated with SSTI. This association did not strengthen as community-associated MRSA became prevalent.
-
Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Cryptococcal immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome after antiretroviral therapy in AIDS patients with cryptococcal meningitis: a prospective multicenter study.
A prospective multicenter study of cryptococcal immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) was conducted as a substudy of the Bacteriology and Mycology Study Group 3-01. Of 101 AIDS patients with cryptococcal meningitis who received highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), 13 experienced cryptococcal IRIS. No association between the timing of HAART initiation and the diagnosis of IRIS was identified. Increased baseline serum cryptococcal antigen (CrAg) titer was a risk factor for cryptococcal IRIS.
-
Review Case Reports
Human paragonimiasis in North America following ingestion of raw crayfish.
Paragonimiasis (human infections with the lung fluke Paragonimus westermani) is an important public health problem in parts of Southeast Asia and China. Paragonamiasis has rarely been reported from North America as a zoonosis caused by Paragonimus kellicotti. Paragonimus species have complex life cycles that require 2 intermediate hosts, namely, snails and crustaceans (ie, crabs or crayfish). ⋯ These patients acquired their infections after consuming raw crayfish from rivers in Missouri. It is likely that other patients with paragonimiasis have been misdiagnosed and improperly treated. Physicians should consider the possibility that patients who present with cough, fever, hemoptysis, and eosinophilia may have paragonimiasis.