Surface and Air Contamination With Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 From Hospitalized Coronavirus Disease 2019 Patients in Toronto, Canada, March-May 2020.

Background: We determined the burden of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in air and on surfaces in rooms of patients hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and investigated patient characteristics associated with SARS-CoV-2 environmental contamination.

Methods: Nasopharyngeal swabs, surface, and air samples were collected from the rooms of 78 inpatients with COVID-19 at 6 acute care hospitals in Toronto from March to May 2020. Samples were tested for SARS-CoV-2 ribonucleic acid (RNA), cultured to determine potential infectivity, and whole viral genomes were sequenced.

Are Sink Drainage Systems a Reservoir for Hospital-Acquired Gammaproteobacteria Colonization and Infection? A Systematic Review.

Increasing rates of antimicrobial-resistant organisms have focused attention on sink drainage systems as reservoirs for hospital-acquired Gammaproteobacteria colonization and infection. We aimed to assess the quality of evidence for transmission from this reservoir. We searched 8 databases and identified 52 studies implicating sink drainage systems in acute care hospitals as a reservoir for Gammaproteobacterial colonization/infection.

Standard versus combined chemical, mechanical, and heat decontamination of hospital drains harboring carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs): A randomized controlled trial.

We sought to determine whether combined chemical, mechanical, and heat cleaning was superior to standard cleaning for the decontamination of 32 sink and shower drains harboring carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs). Of 16 intervention drains, 10 (63%) were decontaminated until day 7 versus 1 (5%) of 16 comparator drains (P = .002).

Sensitivity of midturbinate versus nasopharyngeal swabs for the detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

To compare sensitivity of specimens for COVID-19 diagnosis, we tested 151 nasopharyngeal/midturbinate swab pairs from 117 COVID-19 inpatients using reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Sensitivity was 94% for nasopharyngeal and 75% for midturbinate swabs (P = .0001).

Persistence of serum and saliva antibody responses to SARS-CoV-2 spike antigens in COVID-19 patients.

While the antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 has been extensively studied in blood, relatively little is known about the antibody response in saliva and its relationship to systemic antibody levels. Here, we profiled by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) IgG, IgA and IgM responses to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein (full length trimer) and its receptor-binding domain (RBD) in serum and saliva of acute and convalescent patients with laboratory-diagnosed COVID-19 ranging from 3-115 days post-symptom onset (PSO), compared to negative controls. Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses were readily detected in serum and saliva, with peak IgG levels attained by 16-30 days PSO.

Development of a tool to assess evidence for causality in studies implicating sink drains as a reservoir for hospital-acquired gammaproteobacterial infection.

Background: Decades of studies document an association between Gammaproteobacteria in sink drains and hospital-acquired infections, but the evidence for causality is unclear.

Aim: We aimed to develop a tool to assess the quality of evidence for causality in research studies that implicate sink drains as reservoirs for hospital-acquired Gammaproteobacterial infections.

Methods: We used a modified Delphi process with recruited experts in hospital epidemiology to develop this tool from a pre-existing causal assessment application.

Household Transmission of Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales in Ontario, Canada.

Background: Data on household transmission of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE) remain limited. We studied risk of CPE household co-colonization and transmission in Ontario, Canada.

Methods: We enrolled CPE index cases (identified via population-based surveillance from January 2015 to October 2018) and their household contacts.

Infection prevention and control practices related to carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) in acute-care hospitals in Ontario, Canada.

Objective: To determine infection prevention and control (IPAC) practices for carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE), an emerging threat, at acute-care hospitals in Ontario, Canada.

Design: A descriptive cross-sectional survey.

Methods: We surveyed IPAC directors and managers at all acute-care hospitals in Ontario, Canada, to gather information on IPAC practices related to CPE, including admission screening, other patient screening, environmental testing, use of precautions to prevent transmission, and outbreak management.

Incidence and characteristics of needlestick injuries among medical trainees at a community teaching hospital: A cross-sectional study.

Objectives: This field study aimed to determine the incidence and distribution of needlestick injuries among medical trainees at a community teaching hospital in Toronto, Canada.

Methods: The study was performed during the 2013-2015 academic years at Toronto East General Hospital (TEGH), a University of Toronto-affiliated community-teaching hospital during the 2013-2015 academic years. Eight-hundred and forty trainees, including medical students, residents, and post-graduate fellows, were identified and invited via email to participate in an anonymous online fluidsurveys.

Simkania negevensis and acute cellular rejection in lung transplant recipients.

Simkania negevensis infection has been hypothesized to play a role in lung transplant rejection. The incidence of S. negevensis infection and its association with acute cellular rejection (ACR) were determined in a prospective cohort study of 78 lung transplant recipients (LTRs) in Toronto, Canada, and Pittsburgh, USA, from July 2007 to January 2010.

Risk factors for late-onset cytomegalovirus infection or disease in kidney transplant recipients.

Background: CMV-D+/R- serostatus is the only well-established risk factor for late-onset cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection/disease (i.e., incident CMV infection/disease after cessation of prophylactic antiviral therapy).