Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America
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To estimate the incidence of, identify risk factors for, and describe the clinical presentation of travel-associated African tick bite fever (ATBF), a rapidly emerging disease in travel medicine, we prospectively studied a cohort of 940 travelers to rural sub-Equatorial Africa. Diagnosis was based on suicide polymerase chain reaction and the detection of specific antibodies to Rickettia africae in serum samples by multiple-antigen microimmunofluorescence assay, Western blotting, and cross-adsorption assays. ⋯ Game hunting, travel to southern Africa, and travel during November through April were found to be independent risk factors. Our study suggests that ATBF is not uncommon in travelers to rural sub-Saharan Africa and that many cases have a nonspecific presentation.
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Sepsis with acute organ dysfunction (severe sepsis) is common, frequently fatal, and associated with a significant national health/economic burden. In addition to standard care, investigators have focused on interrupting the inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cascade associated with this disease. Unfortunately, despite promising preclinical results, interventions directed at the inflammatory elements have not reduced the morbidity and mortality associated with this disease. ⋯ Preclinical observations indicate that antithrombotic-targeted therapy has the potential to reduce morbidity and mortality in patients with this disease. Treatment with recombinant human activated protein C (drotrecogin alpha [activated]) was the first antithrombotic-targeted therapy to significantly reduce 28-day all-cause mortality in patients with severe sepsis. The pathophysiological and clinical significance of this evidence and the relationship of coagulation to inflammation are discussed, as are positive and negative results of clinical trials of antithrombotic therapy.
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A case-control study was undertaken to determine risk factors for lactic acidosis in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients treated with nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs). From May 1996 to June 2000, 9 patients with lactic acidosis (defined as a plasma lactic acid level of >5 mM and plasma pH of <7.38) were identified. ⋯ The total cumulative exposure to NRTIs was not associated with an increased risk of lactic acidosis, nor was the cumulative exposure to any of the 4 NRTIs studied. According to these results, monitoring of creatinine clearance, especially in patients with a low nadir CD4+ T lymphocyte count, could lead to modifications in antiretroviral therapy in order to diminish the risk of occurrence of lactic acidosis.
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Little is known about the impact of human rhinovirus (HRV) and coronavirus infections in hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients. We tested bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) samples obtained from HSCT recipients with acute pulmonary infiltrates for HRV (n=122) and coronavirus (n=46) by reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. ⋯ These results suggest that HRV may be a cause of lower respiratory tract infections in HSCT recipients and that its detection in BAL samples is associated with frequent copathogens. Whether the poor prognosis is due to HRV or the copathogen is not clear.
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Prosthetic joint infections (PJIs) occur in approximately 1.5%-2.5% of all primary hip or knee arthroplasties. The mortality rate attributed to PJIs may be as high as 2.5%. Substantial morbidity is associated with a loss of mobility, although this is temporary. ⋯ Two-stage revision is superior to single-stage revision or to debridement with prosthesis retention. Long-term antibiotic suppression and/or arthrodesis are useful for patients too frail to undergo extensive surgery. Using an optimal approach, recurrent infection occurs in <10% of previously infected joints.