Bloodstream infection by Lactobacillus rhamnosus in a haematology patient: why metagenomics can make the difference.

Background: Bloodstream infections (BSIs) pose a persistent threat to hospitalized patients, particularly those who are immunocompromised and susceptible to infections caused by anaerobic or facultative anaerobic bacteria. Alterations in gut microbiota composition can predispose individuals to intestinal domination by one or more pathobionts, increasing the risk of bacterial translocation into the bloodstream and subsequent bacteremia.

Case Presentation: We report the case of a 20-year-old female with multiple relapsed/refractory Philadelphia-negative B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, initially referred to our hematology center for CAR-T cell therapy.

Neonatal Outcomes of Mothers with Syphilis During Pregnancy: A Retrospective Single Center Experience.

Background/objectives: Syphilis during pregnancy can be easily missed with potential severe outcomes of the newborns, including congenital syphilis (CS). We report the neonatal outcomes of a cohort of mothers with syphilis during pregnancy.

Methods: a retrospective cohort study in a referral university hospital in Rome, enrolling mother/newborn couples followed up from 2016 to 2023 by a multidisciplinary team including infectious disease specialists, obstetricians, microbiologists, neonatologists and pediatricians.

Profiling the gut microbiota to assess infection risk in -colonized patients.

Vornhagen et al. introduced a model combining gut microbiota structure and genotype to assess infection risk in -colonized patients. Building on their findings, we investigated the gut microbiota composition and genotype in 16 colonized patients, five of whom had bloodstream infections at the time of fecal sampling.

The expanding role of 16s ribosomal RNA PCR in the management of patients with infective endocarditis undergoing cardiac surgery.

Background: Aetiological diagnosis and targeted antibiotic therapy are essential to improve the prognosis of patients with infective endocarditis. Molecular tests on blood have been reported to be effective in identifying the causative organism and are recommended when blood cultures are negative. The role of molecular tests on the surgically excised valve is still unclear and needs further investigation.

Evaluating the Effect of Climate on Viral Respiratory Diseases Among Children Using AI.

: Respiratory viral infections (RVIs) exhibit seasonal patterns influenced by biological, ecological, and climatic factors. Weather variables such as temperature, humidity, and wind impact the transmission of droplet-borne viruses, potentially affecting disease severity. However, the role of climate in predicting complications in pediatric RVIs remains unclear, particularly in the context of climate-change-driven extreme weather events.

A New Easy-to-Perform Flow Cytometry Assay for Determining Bacterial- and Viral-Infection-Induced Polymorphonuclear Neutrophil and Monocyte Membrane Marker Modulation in Febrile Patients.

We developed a flow cytometry (FC) assay enabling the rapid and accurate identification of bacterial and viral infections using whole blood samples. The streamlined flow cytometry assay is designed to be user-friendly, making it accessible even for operators with limited experience in FC techniques. The key components of the assay focus on the expression levels of specific surface markers-CD64 on polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) as a marker for bacterial infection, and CD169 on monocytes (MO) for viral infection.

Impact of SARS-CoV-2 on Viral Respiratory Infections in Patients with Hematological Malignancies.

Patients with hematological malignancies (HMs) are at high risk of respiratory viral infections due to the intrinsic deterioration of the immune system and chemotherapy treatments. In the recent past, SARS-CoV-2 respiratory viral infection has been responsible for most infectious complications in HMs. We analyzed 2950 samples from 505 patients admitted to the Hematology department from 2019 to 2023.

Reemergence of Streptococcus pyogenes Infections in a Large Italian Hospital: A déjà vu from past Years.

At the end of 2022 and in the following months, an increase in the incidence of Streptococcus pyogenes infections was observed in many European countries that was simultaneously accompanying to enhance of invasive infections (iGAS). We have showed a risen trend of S. pyogenes infections among preschoolers after the pandemic event.

Increasing Detection of Legionnaires' Disease in a Large Italian Hospital in the Period 2016-2023.

The pandemic marked the beginning of an era of dynamic and rapid changes in the diagnosis of respiratory infections. Herein we describe Legionnaires' disease trend in the years 2016-2023 in a large Italian hospital showing how improvements in diagnostic algorithms impact on its detection.

Determinants of antibiotic prescription in children with adenovirus respiratory tract infections.

We performed this study to evaluate factors associated with antibiotic prescriptions in children with adenovirus infection, since no studies have attempted to address this aspect in the pediatric population. Retrospective study of children younger than 18 years of age tested positive for adenovirus on a syndromic nasopharyngeal test from 2018 to 2023. We compared the need of pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), invasive ventilation, and other respiratory support, viral etiologies, clinical presentations, imaging, and laboratory results in the precovid (2018-2019) and covid (2020-2022) period.

Early assessment of blood culture negativity as a potential support tool for antimicrobial stewardship.

Objective: To assess whether 48-h negative blood culture (BC) bottles are still negative at the classic 120-h incubation endpoint and whether 48 h might be the time to make antimicrobial therapy decisions.

Methods: Data from the first collected bottles from bloodstream infection (BSI) episodes of single patients were retrospectively analyzed. Probabilities of bottles being negative at the classic endpoint were calculated from 0 to 120 h of incubation.

Association of piperacillin/tazobactam MIC and mortality in a cohort of ceftriaxone-resistant Escherichia coli bloodstream infections treated with piperacillin/tazobactam and carbapenems: a multicentric propensity score-weighted observational cohort study.

Objectives: To assess the impact of piperacillin/tazobactam MICs on in-hospital 30 day mortality in patients with third-generation cephalosporin-resistant Escherichia coli bloodstream infection treated with piperacillin/tazobactam, compared with those treated with carbapenems.

Methods: A multicentre retrospective cohort study was conducted in three large academic hospitals in Italy between 2018 and 2022. The study population comprised patients with monomicrobial third-generation cephalosporin-resistant E.

Prevalence and Antimicrobial Resistance Patterns of Hospital Acquired Infections through the COVID-19 Pandemic: Real-Word Data from a Tertiary Urological Centre.

Background: Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) remains a significant public health concern, closely linked to antibiotic overuse. During the COVID-19 pandemic, broad-spectrum antibiotics were frequently administered, potentially exacerbating AMR. This study aimed to assess AMR patterns in our urology department before and after the pandemic.

Changes in clinical, demographic, and outcome patterns of children hospitalized with non-SARS-CoV-2 viral low respiratory tract infections before and during the COVID pandemic in Rome, Italy.

Introduction: We performed this study aiming to evaluate changes in epidemiology, clinical presentation and outcomes of children hospitalized for viral lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI).

Methods: We performed a retrospective study of children younger than 18 years of age hospitalized for LRTIs with a positive respiratory viral testing from 2018 to 2022. We compared need of pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), invasive ventilation, and other respiratory support, viral etiologies, clinical presentations, imaging, and laboratory results in the precovid (2018-2019) and covid (2020-2022) period.

Retrospective Study on Resistance Profile and Antibiotic Use in a Pediatric Population.

The growing phenomenon of antibiotic resistance and the presence of limited data concerning the pediatric area prompted us to focus on infection in this study, its antibiotic resistance profile, and the therapeutic management of affected children. We conducted a retrospective study by collecting clinical data on infants and children with antibiogram-associated infection. We enrolled 1210 patients with a mean age of 0.

Epidemiology, time course, and risk factors for hospital-acquired bloodstream infections in a cohort of 14,884 patients before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objective: COVID-19 pandemic has changed in-hospital care and was linked to superimposed infections. Here, we described epidemiology and risk factors for hospital-acquired bloodstream infections (HA-BSIs), before and during COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: This retrospective, observational, single-center real-life study included 14,884 patients admitted to hospital wards and intensive care units (ICUs) with at least one blood culture, drawn 48 h after admission, either before (pre-COVID,  = 7382) or during pandemic ( = 7502, 1203 COVID-19+ and 6299 COVID-19-).

Respiratory viruses in the pre and post-pandemic periods in an Italian tertiary hospital.

We have appreciated the article published by Bardsley and colleagues describing the seasonal circulation of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in UK children, and we hope to contribute to increase information on this intriguing and elusive topic. We describe our epidemiological trend with the aim to add a small brick to the current knowledge regarding respiratory infections due to RSV and other respiratory viruses in an era that is changing due to a radical change in the evaluation of respiratory symptoms following the pandemic event.

Incidence of bloodstream infections due to multidrug-resistant pathogens in ordinary wards and intensive care units before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a real-life, retrospective observational study.

Purpose: SARS-COV-2 pandemic led to antibiotic overprescription and unprecedented stress on healthcare systems worldwide. Knowing the comparative incident risk of bloodstream infection due to multidrug-resistant pathogens in COVID ordinary wards and intensive care-units may give insights into the impact of COVID-19 on antimicrobial resistance.

Methods: Single-center observational data extracted from a computerized dataset were used to identify all patients who underwent blood cultures from January 1, 2018 to May 15, 2021.

Usefulness of differential time to positivity between catheter and peripheral blood cultures for diagnosing catheter-related bloodstream infection: Data analysis from routine clinical practice in the intensive care unit.

Purpose: To assess the accuracy of differential time to positivity (DTP) method for the diagnosis of catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSI) in the routine practice of our intensive care unit (ICU).

Materials And Methods: Over a five-year study period, ICU patients with a central venous catheter in place for ≥48 h and undergoing DTP test with catheter tip culture were analyzed. We investigated: the accuracy of DTP test with the usual threshold of 120 min in confirming the clinical suspicion of CRBSI; the most accurate threshold value of DTP to detect CRBSI; the diagnostic accuracy of the ratio (rather than the difference) between times to positivity.

Escherichia coli resistance patterns, empiric and targeted antibiotic prescriptions in children: a single center experience.

Background And Aim: Antibiotic resistance represents one of the major public health issues, due to the potential future ineffectiveness of available antibiotics. However, epidemiological studies on E. coli antibiotic resistance patterns in the pediatric population are limited.

COVID-19 increased in Italian children in the autumn and winter 2021-2022 period when Omicron was the dominant variant.

Aim: We examined the prevalence of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in children during the autumn and winter season from 1 September 2021 to 30 January 2022 and compared it with the same period in 2020-2021.

Methods: This study was carried out int the paediatric emergency department (PED) of a tertiary Italian hospital. We compared the clinical and demographical features of all children who presented during the two study periods and tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.