Rapid Electrochemical Detection of New Delhi Metallo-beta-lactamase Genes To Enable Point-of-Care Testing of Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae.

The alarming rate at which antibiotic resistance is occurring in human pathogens causes a pressing need for improved diagnostic technologies aimed at rapid detection and point-of-care testing to support quick decision making regarding antibiotic therapy and patient management. Here, we report the successful development of an electrochemical biosensor to detect bla(NDM), the gene encoding the emerging New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase, using label-free electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The presence of this gene is of critical concern because organisms harboring bla(NDM) tend to be multiresistant, leaving very few treatment options.

A prospective study of community-associated Clostridium difficile infections: the role of antibiotics and co-infections.

Objectives: This prospective study was performed to determine the incidence, risk factors, severity and outcomes of community-associated Clostridium difficile infection (CA-CDI) in the SE of Scotland.

Methods: All patients (335) diagnosed with laboratory confirmed CDI in the city of Edinburgh, East Lothian and Midlothian regions of Scotland between August 2010 and July 2011 were followed up for one year after diagnosis. Clinical details and laboratory markers were recorded.

A selected screening programme was less effective in the detection of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonisation in an orthopaedic unit.

Purpose: Our unit has used a selective screening policy for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) colonisation using standard chromogenic growth media, based upon risk stratification. The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of this selective screening policy.

Methods: A cohort of 429 patients was assessed for their risk status for MRSA colonisation using both rapid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) swabs and traditional culture and sensitivity analysis.

Increasing clinical presence of mobile communication technology: avoiding the pitfalls.

Mobile communication technologies are employed in many diverse areas of healthcare delivery to provide improved quality and efficiency of communication and facilitate increased rapidity of data or information transfer. Mobile phones enable healthcare professionals to possess a portable platform from which to provide many healthcare-related applications and are a popular means to directly communicate with colleagues and patients. As involvement of mobile communication technology in healthcare delivery continues to rapidly expand, there are also important considerations of relevance to patient safety and security as a result.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in surgical patients: identification of high-risk populations for the development of targeted screening programmes.

Introduction: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-related hospital-acquired infection (HAI) in surgical patients is associated with high morbidity, mortality and financial cost. The identification and characterisation of populations of patients who are at high risk of developing MRSA infection or colonisation could inform the design of more effective strategies to prevent HAIs and reduce transmission of MRSA.

Patients And Methods: An analysis of historical discharge data for the whole of 2005 (7145 surgical in-patients) was performed, for all patients admitted to general surgery at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.

Interaction of Yersinia enterocolitica and Y. pseudotuberculosis with platelets.

Yersinia enterocolitica is a bacterium capable of growth at 4 degrees C in donated blood and has been responsible for many deaths following transfusion. Interaction of Y. enterocolitica with blood cells is of interest in understanding the mechanisms of survival and growth in blood.

Nosocomial outbreak of carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa with a new bla(IMP) allele, bla(IMP-7).

Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates from an outbreak in Canada were highly resistant to carbapenems and ceftazidime but not piperacillin. They produced a novel integron-associated metallo-beta-lactamase, designated IMP-7, with 91% identity to IMP-1. bla(IMP-7) was not detected with standard bla(IMP)-specific primers, owing to mismatches in the forward primer.