The importance of microbiology reference laboratories and adequate funding for infectious disease surveillance.

Microbiology reference laboratories perform a crucial role within public health systems. This role was especially evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this Viewpoint, we emphasise the importance of microbiology reference laboratories and highlight the types of digital data and expertise they provide, which benefit national and international public health.

Sentinel surveillance in bacterial pneumonia in children under 5 years old in a fourth-level pediatric hospital in Colombia 2016-2022.

Objectives: Sentinel surveillance for bacterial pneumonia (SSBP) allows the monitoring of immunopreventable diseases. The results of the SSBP carried out at HOMI, Fundación Hospital pediátrico de la Misericordia, are presented.

Methods: The daily active search for cases was carried out in accordance with the protocol of the Pan American Health Organization from January 2016 to December 2022.

Rest in Peace or in Pieces: Post-Mortem Care Options in U.S. Advance Directives.

Advance Directives (ADs) have traditionally focused on documenting patients' end-of-life (EOL) care preferences. Recently, discussions surrounding post-mortem care as an additional aspect of EOL care planning have gained attention. This study examined ADs across all 50 states and the District of Columbia (referred to as "entities"), assessing their inclusion of two post-mortem categories: funeral planning and anatomical gifts.

Advance Directives Revisited (2002 vs 2023): Are We Closer to Uniformity?

Background And Objectives: Advance directives (ADs) are based on state-specific statutes that vary in structure, terminology, and options. This variability leads to inconsistent end-of-life (EOL) care for patients who have executed an AD in 1 state but fall ill in another state. This study revisits a 2002 article that identified considerable differences in ADs to determine whether ADs have become more uniform.

Indirect impact of PCV10 children vaccination on the serotype distribution and antimicrobial resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae causing invasive disease in adults over 50 in Colombia, 2005-2019: Observational analysis.

Introduction: The introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) into childhood vaccination programmes has reduced the prevalence of vaccine serotypes (VTs) that cause invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in children. In the elderly population, an impact has also been seen through indirect protection (herd effect). The aim of this study was to estimate the changes in serotype distribution and antimicrobial susceptibility of Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates recovered from adult IPD and to evaluate the indirect effect of immunization with PCV10 based on laboratory records by analyzing the period from 2005 to 2019 for six years before and eight years after the universal PCV10 administration to Colombian children.

Fearing Pain at the End of Life: A Review of Advance Directives.

Background: Patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals often describe a "good death" as a pain-free process. However, many patients experience pain during their last weeks of life. Advance directives (ADs) are legally binding documents that allow individuals to express their wishes for end-of-life care which should include management of their pain.

Distribution, frequency and clinical presentation of leptospirosis and coinfections: a systematic review protocol.

Introduction: Leptospirosis is a zoonotic disease with high prevalence in low-income and middle-income countries and tropical and subtropical regions. The clinical symptoms of the disease are similar to symptoms presented by other endemic infectious diseases that could be present simultaneously. Thus, leptospirosis could be masked by similar infections like dengue, malaria, hantavirus, melioidosis and borreliosis, among others.

Laboratory-based surveillance of Shigella spp. from human clinical cases in Colombia, 1997-2018.

Introduction: Shigellosis is endemic in low-and middle-income countries, causing approximately 125 million episodes of diarrhea and leading to approximately 160 .000 deaths annually one-third of which is associated with children.

Objective: To describe the characteristics and antimicrobial resistance profiles of Shigella species recovered in Colombia from 1997 to 2018.

Genomic Diversity of Burkholderia pseudomallei Isolates, Colombia.

We report an analysis of the genomic diversity of isolates of Burkholderia pseudomallei, the cause of melioidosis, recovered in Colombia from routine surveillance during 2016-2017. B. pseudomallei appears genetically diverse, suggesting it is well established and has spread across the region.

Prenatal alcohol exposure prevalence as measured by direct ethanol metabolites in meconium in a Native American tribe of the southwest.

Background: Although fetal alcohol spectrum disorders represent a significant public health problem, Native Americans are underrepresented in population and targeted screening programs. Prior reports suggest that Native American tribal communities may have a higher prevalence of alcohol use during pregnancy; however, systematic examination using ethanol biomarkers is lacking.

Methods: This study utilized data collected through the Navajo Birth Cohort Study (NBCS)-a birth cohort study of a Southwestern tribal community.

Barriers and facilitators to dispensing of intranasal naloxone by pharmacists.

Background: Although misuse of prescription opioids has reached epidemic proportions, pharmacy-based preventive services to combat this epidemic are limited. The aims of this study were to identify barriers and facilitators to the dispensing of intranasal naloxone (INN) by pharmacists in New Mexico.

Methods: For this mixed-methods study, a qualitative component (focus group) informed the development of a quantitative component (electronic survey) distributed to all pharmacists registered with the New Mexico Board of Pharmacy and practicing in the state.

Laboratory surveillance of Salmonella enterica from human clinical cases in Colombia 2005-2011.

Introduction: Salmonella is an enteropathogen acquired through contaminated food or water. In Colombia, Salmonella spp. is included in the national surveillance of Acute Diarrhoeal Diseases and typhoid fever initiated in 1997.

[Molecular characterization of Shigella sonnei isolates recovered by the Laboratory Surveillance Program for Acute Diarrheal Disease in Colombia].

Introduction: In Colombia, Shigella sonnei is one of the most frequently isolated serotypes (53.4%) in human clinical samples associated with diarrheal acute disease. The identification of DNA restriction patterns by pulsed field gel electrophoresis is the basis for the molecular surveillance of S.

Warfarin anticoagulation after total hip or total knee replacement: clinical and resource-utilization outcomes in a university-based antithrombosis clinic.

Purpose: Clinical and resource-utilization outcomes associated with warfarin anticoagulation after major orthopedic surgery were evaluated.

Methods: Consecutive patients who received postsurgical prophylaxis with warfarin within 24 hours of total knee replacement (TKR) or total hip replacement (THR) surgery and who were referred to and had outpatient follow-up for anticoagulation management in a single-center, university-based antithrombosis clinic from January 1, 1998, to January 1, 2009, were included in the study. Data were obtained from existing inpatient and outpatient medical records and retrospectively reviewed.

The validity of International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification diagnosis codes for identifying patients hospitalized for COPD exacerbations.

Background: Acute exacerbations of COPD (AE-COPD) are a leading cause of hospitalizations in the United States. To estimate the burden of disease (eg, prevalence and cost), identify opportunities to improve care quality (eg, performance measures), and conduct observational comparative effectiveness research studies, various algorithms based on the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) codes have been used to identify patients with COPD. However, the validity of these algorithms remains unclear.

Hospitalizations for acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: how you count matters.

ICD-9-CM diagnosis codes are increasingly used to estimate the burden of disease, as well as to evaluate the quality of care and outcomes of various conditions. Acute exacerbations of COPD (AE-COPD) are common and associated with substantial health and financial burden in the U.S.