Antimicrobial use in pediatric patients: a subgroup analysis of the 2020 point prevalence survey in Aichi, Japan.

Background: Establishing the precise epidemiology of antimicrobial use (AMU) is essential to promote antimicrobial stewardship. However, data on AMU for pediatric inpatients in Japanese hospitals are lacking. In this study, we performed a subgroup analysis focusing on pediatric patients from a point prevalence survey.

Prolonged Bacillus cereus bacteremia: case report and literature review.

A 77-year-old man, initially diagnosed with pneumonia presented with fever and was administered continuous amino acid preparations and meropenem. Bacillus cereus was isolated from two separate sets of blood cultures, leading to a diagnosis of catheter-related bloodstream infection. Despite treatment with teicoplanin (TEIC) and additional antibiotics, B.

Efficacy of Enhanced Antimicrobial Stewardship Team Interventions for Patients Receiving Meropenem and Tazobactam/Piperacillin.

Multidrug-resistant bacteria pose a major challenge in healthcare, and antimicrobial stewardship teams (ASTs) play a crucial role in optimizing antimicrobial use, particularly for last-resort drugs like meropenem (MEPM) and tazobactam/piperacillin (TAZ/PIPC). This study evaluated the impact of enhanced interventions, which included a hospital-wide policy restricting MEPM and TAZ/PIPC use to 5 d and mandating pre-treatment culture testing. A before-and-after study was conducted at a public hospital in Japan, comparing the pre- (June 2021-May 2022) and post-enhanced intervention (June 2022-May 2023) periods.

On the spatial synaptic propagation of excitations induced by repetitive microstimulation pulses in the mouse visual cortex.

The spatial synaptic propagation of membrane excitation in response to the trains of microstimulation pulses applied to the cortical layer II/III in the mouse cerebral tissue slices was analyzed by means of the voltage-sensitive dye imaging and the numerical simulation with a one-dimensional network model. The present model was able to simulate the spatial dynamics of the post-synaptic component of response induced by the repetitive current pulses.

infection successfully treated with oral administration of minocycline and thermotherapy.

We report a case of a woman presenting with an erythematous finger nodule, with a history of exposure to tropical fish. The erythematous nodules subsequently spread proximally from the finger. Initial treatment with oral amoxicillin-clavulanate was unsuccessful, and she developed a drug eruption.

Flavonifractor plautii bacteremia following bacterial translocation from the gut: A case report and literature review.

A 75-year-old male, hospitalized with back pain, remained hospitalized for tests for unexplained colitis, which was diagnosed as inflammatory bowel disease unclassified and treated with antibiotics and prednisolone, resulting in Clostridioides difficile colitis. Therefore, antibiotics were discontinued, and oral metronidazole treatment was initiated; however, as the patient's fever persisted, blood cultures were performed. An anaerobic bottle of blood culture turned positive the following day.

Evaluation of pathogenicity through holistic gene content analysis.

is a Gram-negative bacterium that causes both community- and healthcare-associated infections. Although various virulence factors and highly pathogenic phenotypes have been reported, the pathogenicity of is still not fully understood. In this study, we utilized whole-genome sequencing data of 168 clinical strains to assess pathogenicity.

Clinical isolates of -related species with reduced carbapenem susceptibility, harboring amino acid substitutions in penicillin-binding proteins in Japan.

group isolates with reduced carbapenem susceptibility have been reported, but its isolation rate in Japan is unknown. We collected 356 clinical α-hemolytic streptococcal isolates and identified 142 of them as using partial sequencing. The rate of meropenem non-susceptibility was 17.

Development of a rapid detection method for the macrolide resistance gene in using the amplification refractory mutation system-loop-mediated isothermal amplification method.

Macrolide antibiotics such as clarithromycin (CLR) and azithromycin are the key drugs used in multidrug therapy for complex (MAC) diseases. For these antibacterial drugs, drug susceptibility has been correlated with clinical response in MAC diseases. We have previously demonstrated the correlation between drug susceptibility and mutations in the 23S rRNA gene, which confers resistance to macrolides.

Characteristics of pediatric patients claimed with acute upper respiratory infection during otorhinolaryngology consultations: A descriptive study of a large Japanese medical claims database.

This study aimed to clarify other diseases claimed simultaneously with acute upper respiratory infection (URI), antibiotic prescriptions, and examinations associated with infectious diseases in pediatric patients with acute URI insurance claims at otorhinolaryngology outpatient visits. Pediatric patients who visited an otolaryngology department between 2019 and 2021 and were definitively diagnosed with URI were selected using a large Japanese medical claims database. Patient backgrounds, antibiotic use, and examinations were descriptively evaluated.

Catheter-related bloodstream infection caused by Lacticaseibacillus paracasei: A case report and literature review.

Catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSIs) caused by Lactobacillus spp. and Lacticaseibacillus spp. are rare, and their clinical course and optimal treatment remain uncertain.

Evaluation of long-term pharmacist-led prospective audit and feedback in antimicrobial stewardship: An 8-year study.

Background: Limited research has evaluated the long-term outcomes of prospective audit and feedback (PAF) led by pharmacists. We assessed pharmacist-led PAF processes and outcome measures over 8 years.

Methods: This study was conducted at a single public hospital in Japan.

Inactivation characteristics of a 280 nm Deep-UV irradiation dose on aerosolized SARS-CoV-2.

A non-filter virus inactivation unit was developed that can control the irradiation dose of aerosolized viruses by controlling the lighting pattern of a 280 nm deep-UV (DUV)-LED and the air flowrate. In this study, the inactivation properties of aerosolized SARS-CoV-2 were quantitatively evaluated by controlling the irradiation dose to the virus inside the inactivation unit. The RNA concentration of SARS-CoV-2 remained constant when the total irradiation dose of DUV irradiation to the virus exceeded 16.

Characteristics of collection and inactivation of virus in air flowing inside a winding conduit equipped with 280 nm deep UV-LEDs.

A general-purpose virus inactivation unit that can inactivate viruses was developed using deep ultraviolet (DUV) LEDs that emit DUV rays with a wavelength of 280 nm. The inside of the virus inactivation unit is a rectangular conduit with a sharp turn of 180° (sharp-turned rectangular conduit). Virus inactivation is attempted by directly irradiating the air passing through the conduit with DUV rays.

＜Editors' Choice＞ Multicenter survey for carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales in central Japan.

Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE) raise concerns about the treatment options for infectious diseases and infection control. We conducted a multicenter study to clarify the molecular epidemiology of CPE in the Aichi Prefecture during the first 3-month period from 2015 to 2019. Carbapenemase production was screened using a modified carbapenem inactivation method, and the genotypes of the carbapenemase genes were determined by polymerase chain reaction sequencing.

Multichannel stimulation module as a tool for animal studies on cortical neural prostheses.

Intracortical microstimulation to the visual cortex is thought to be a feasible technique for inducing localized phosphenes in patients with acquired blindness, and thereby for visual prosthesis. In order to design effective stimuli for the prosthesis, it is important to elucidate relationships between the spatio-temporal patterns of stimuli and the resulting neural responses and phosphenes through pre-clinical animal studies. However, the physiological basis of effective spatial patterns of the stimuli for the prosthesis has been little investigated in the literature, at least partly because that the previously developed multi-channel stimulation systems were designed specifically for the clinical use.

Extended-spectrum antibiotics for community-acquired pneumonia with a low risk for drug-resistant pathogens.

Objectives: The potential hazards of extended-spectrum antibiotic therapy for patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) with low risk for drug-resistant pathogens (DRPs) remain unclear; however, risk assessment for DRPs is essential to determine the initial antibiotics to be administered. The study objective was to assess the effect of unnecessary extended-spectrum therapy on the mortality of such patients.

Methods: A post hoc analysis was conducted after a prospective multicenter observational study for CAP.

Effects of lymphocyte and neutrophil counts and their time courses on mortality in patients with postoperative pneumonia.

The prognostic significance of absolute lymphocyte count (ALC) and absolute neutrophil count (ANC) remains unclear in patients with postoperative pneumonia (POP). The study objectives were to investigate the prognostic effects of ALC and ANC in POP patients, and to evaluate the time courses of ALC and ANC during hospitalization. This post-hoc analysis of a single-center prospective observational study evaluated consecutive POP patients, and comparatively analyzed community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) patients to highlight features of POP.

PCR-based ORF typing of Klebsiella pneumoniae for rapid identification of global clones and transmission events.

Aims: Klebsiella pneumoniae is a major cause of healthcare-associated infections. In this study, we aimed to develop a rapid and simple genotyping method that can characterize strains causing nosocomial infections.

Methods And Results: The PCR-based open reading frame (ORF) typing (POT) method consists of two multiplex PCR reactions that were designed to detect 25 ORFs specific to bacterial genetic lineages, species, antimicrobial-resistant genes (bla , bla , bla and bla ), a capsular K1-specific gene and a virulence factor gene (rmpA/A2).