Evaluation of Antibody Kinetics Following COVID-19 Vaccination in Greek SARS-CoV-2 Infected and Naïve Healthcare Workers.

We investigated the antibody kinetics after vaccination against COVID-19 in healthcare workers of a Greek tertiary hospital. Eight hundred and three subjects were included, of whom 758 (94.4%) received the BNT162b2 vaccine (Pfizer-BioNTech), eight (1%) mRNA-1273 (Moderna), 14 (1.

Oxidative Stress Biomarkers in Coronary Artery Disease.

Oxidative stress plays a central role in atherogenesis, implicated in endothelial dysfunction, coronary plaque formation, and destabilization. Therefore, identifying oxidative stress in the vascular wall by reliable biomarkers could aid in early diagnosis and better coronary artery disease (CAD) prognostication. Because of the short half-life of reactive oxygen species, the current approach is to measure stable products generated by the oxidation of macromolecules in plasma or urine.

Predictors of mortality of Acinetobacter baumannii infections: A 2-year prospective study in a Greek surgical intensive care unit.

Background: Nosocomial infections are a frequent and continuously increasing problem worldwide, have a rapidly increasing multidrug resistance to antibiotics, and are associated with significant morbidity and mortality.

Objective: Our objectives were to evaluate Acinetobacter baumannii infection incidence in our surgical intensive care unit (SICU), the clinical features and outcome of these patients, and, particularly, to investigate predictors of A baumannii infection-related mortality.

Methods: Ours was a prospective study of all patients with ICU-acquired A baumannii infection from January 1, 2006, to December 31, 2007.

Neosartorya hiratsukae peritonitis through continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis.

Fungal peritonitis is a rare, potentially lethal, complication of continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). We report what we believe to be the first confirmed Neosartorya hiratsukae CAPD-related peritonitis case in Europe. The patient died, despite early removal of the peritoneal catheter and antifungal therapy.

Efficacy and safety of high-dose ampicillin/sulbactam vs. colistin as monotherapy for the treatment of multidrug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii ventilator-associated pneumonia.

Objective: To compare the safety and efficacy of ampicillin/sulbactam (Amp/Sulb) and colistin (COL) in the treatment of multidrug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP).

Methods: A prospective cohort study in adult critically ill patients with VAP. Patients were randomly assigned to receive Amp/Sulb (9 g every 8h) or COL (3 MIU every 8h) intravenously.

High-dose ampicillin-sulbactam as an alternative treatment of late-onset VAP from multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii.

The increased incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) Acinetobacter baumannii ventilator-associated pneumonia in critically ill patients poses a severe therapeutic problem. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of 2 high-dose treatment regimens of ampicillin-sulbactam (A/S) for MDR Acinetobacter baumannii VAP. We undertook a randomized, prospective trial of critically ill patents with (MDR) Acinetobacter baumannii VAP.

Increasing frequency of Gram-positive bacteria in spontaneous bacterial peritonitis.

Aim: To evaluate the characteristics and possible recent changes of the microbial causes of spontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) in cirrhotic patients.

Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 42 cirrhotic patients with positive ascitic fluid culture and without evidence of secondary peritonitis who were admitted consecutively to our Department between 1998 and 2002.

Results: Twenty (48%) of 42 patients with positive ascitic fluid culture were diagnosed during 1998-1999 (period A) and the remaining 22 (52%) patients during 2000-2002 (period B).

Plesiomonas shigelloides sepsis in a thalassemia intermedia patient.

Bacteremia due to Plesiomonas shigelloides was associated with rapidly fulminant septicemia, disseminated intravascular coagulation and massive adrenal hemorrhage in a splenectomized patient suffering from thalassemia intermedia who was treated with hydroxyurea. P. shigelloides was isolated in blood cultures; despite a vigorous combination of antibiotics the patient died after 24 h in the ICU.