Infectious Diseases: Archives

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

Preexisting Immunity to the 2009 H1N1 Virus

• September 16, 2009
• Larry M. Baddour, MD

Very few individuals younger than 30 have protective levels of cross-reactive neutralizing antibodies against this virus.

• Reviewing:
• Hancock K et al., N Engl J Med 2009 Sep 10

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

At Home with MRSA

• September 9, 2009
• Larry M. Baddour, MD

Older household contacts, and those who provide home healthcare to individuals with MRSA colonization, are at risk for MRSA colonization.

• Reviewing:
• Lucet J-C et al., Arch Intern Med 2009 Aug 10/24; 169:1372

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

Endocarditis and Brain EmbolizationFree

• September 9, 2009
• Larry M. Baddour, MD

Among persons with left-sided infective endocarditis, subclinical brain embolization occurs more often than previously believed.

• Reviewing:
• Cooper HA et al., Circulation 2009 Aug 18; 120:585

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

ART and Kaposi Sarcoma: Mostly Good News

• September 9, 2009
• Rajesh T. Gandhi, MD

Antiretroviral therapy alone is generally effective in controlling early-stage Kaposi sarcoma.

• Reviewing:
• Bower M et al., AIDS 2009 Aug 24; 23:1701

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

Azithromycin Reduces Child Mortality in Ethiopia

• September 9, 2009
• Richard T. Ellison III, MD

A single mass oral azithromycin treatment to control trachoma was associated with a substantial reduction in child mortality.

• Reviewing:
• Porco TC et al., JAMA 2009 Sep 2; 302:962

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

Upper-Airway Specimens at ICU Admission to Guide VAP Treatment?

• September 2, 2009
• Thomas Glück, MD

Microorganisms identified in upper-airway specimens fairly accurately predicted the pathogens underlying early-onset ventilator-associated pneumonia.

• Reviewing:
• Pirracchio R et al., Crit Care Med 2009 Sep; 37:2559

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

Who Should Receive Flu Vaccine?Free

• September 2, 2009
• Richard T. Ellison III, MD

A mathematical model incorporating transmission dynamics suggests that priority be given to immunizing schoolchildren and adults aged 30 to 39.

• Reviewing:
• Medlock J and Galvani AP., Science 2009 Aug 20

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

Typhoid Fever in the U.S.Free

• August 26, 2009
• Richard T. Ellison III, MD

Most cases of typhoid fever in the U.S. are associated with travel to the Indian subcontinent; drug-resistant organisms underlie an increasing proportion of such infections.

• Reviewing:
• Lynch MF et al., JAMA 2009 Aug 26; 302:859 Bhutta ZA and Threlfall J., JAMA 2009 Aug 26; 302:898

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

A Genetic Susceptibility to Candidiasis?

• August 26, 2009
• Neil M. Ampel, MD

In a cohort of hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients, heterozygosity for a DECTIN-1 polymorphism was associated with increased risk for Candida colonization.

• Reviewing:
• Plantinga TS et al., Clin Infect Dis 2009 Sep 1; 49:724 Bochud P-Y and Calandra T., Clin Infect Dis 2009 Sep 1; 49:733

SUMMARY AND COMMENT

Linezolid for Persistent MRSA Bacteremia?

• August 26, 2009
• Neil M. Ampel, MD

Linezolid-based regimens were significantly more likely than continued vancomycin-based therapy to clear blood cultures within 72 hours and to prevent S. aureus–related death.

• Reviewing:
• Jang H-C et al., Clin Infect Dis 2009 Aug 1; 49:395