Med Klin
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Comparative Study
[Antibiotic Use at German University Hospitals (Project INTERUNI-II). Results for Medical Intensive Care, Hematology-Oncology, and Other Medical Service Areas].
Excessive antibiotic use increases the risk of development and dissemination of bacterial resistance. A comparative analysis of the correlation between hospital antibiotic consumption and rates of bacterial resistance is needed for a better understanding of the complex relationship between antibiotic use and resistance. Apart from economic and market research studies, estimates of antibiotic consumption in German hospitals, however, are not available. ⋯ This retrospective study showed significant variation in overall and specific antibacterial drug class use between German teaching hospital medical services and defined patient care areas. Given the variation in the obtained estimates, targeted prospective hospital antibiotic use surveillance with fast data acquisition and analysis might offer an excellent opportunity to evaluate the impact of differences in antibiotic use and of revised therapy guidelines on the evolution of nosocomial bacterial resistance.
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A 43-year-old, cachectic, alcohol-addicted patient was admitted to the hospital due to hemoptysis and fever of up to 40 degrees C for the last 4 days. Physical examination revealed pleural rubs in the right lower lung and a diffuse pain in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen. The right upper quadrant of the abdomen also showed scars from several surgical interventions on the small intestine, the liver and the biliary tract and deformed caudal ribs due to an accident 23 years earlier. ⋯ Bronchobiliary fistulas are very rare. In most cases they are caused by hepatic or subphrenic abscesses, resulting from different conditions. The development of an bronchobiliary fistula originating from a Klebsiella pneumoniae pneumonia, as indicated by this report, has not been described so far. In the patient presented here, treatment was achieved due to continuous drainage despite the large extent of the abscess.
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Access to health care always has been one of the most critical issues for offshore crews. Therefore, telemedicine has a long and outstanding tradition in the maritime environment. Since 1931 Cuxhaven medical center (Medico Cuxhaven) operates as a hospital-based radio medical advice center (RMA) for ships worldwide providing one of the first routine telemedical services worldwide. ⋯ This system allows worldwide communications as it is capable of all possible means of telecommunication such as GSM, Inmarsat-ISDN or Iridium-Satellite-Transmission. So far, this system has been installed on board several German SAR rescue boats. However, radio telephone and the simple transmission of digital photography remain the basis of maritime radio medical advice service.