Increase in veterinary prescriptions of azithromycin during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil.

Introduction: With the advent of the pandemic in 2020 and the lack of perspectives on the treatment of COVID-19, numerous therapeutic proposals have emerged, including hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin. Therefore, some studies have shown that in many countries, the demand for azithromycin has increased during the pandemic. In Brazil, antibiotics can only be purchased with a medical, dental, or veterinary prescription.

Sales trends of psychotropic drugs in the COVID-19 pandemic: A national database study in Brazil.

The social restrictions among coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have posed a thoughtful risk to mental health and have implications in the use of drugs, including antidepressants, anxiolytics and other psychotropics. This study analyzed the sales data of the psychotropics prescribed in Brazil, in order to verify the change in consumption trends of these drugs during the COVID-19 pandemic. This interrupted time-series analyzed psychotropic sales data, between January 2014 and July 2021, using the National System of Controlled Products Management from The Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency.

Impact of COVID-19 on antibiotic prescriptions for Brazilian children.

The COVID-19 brought a new model of sanitary behavior (social distancing, etc.) that may have reduced the transmissibility of respiratory diseases, reflecting in the number of antibiotic prescriptions. This study evaluated antibiotic prescriptions for children throughout Brazil, between 2014 and 2021.

Isolation and Molecular Characterization of Two Novel Lytic Bacteriophages for the Biocontrol of in Uterine Infections: In Vitro and Ex Vivo Preliminary Studies in Veterinary Medicine.

is one of the etiological agents responsible for pyometra in female dogs, with conventional treatment involving ovariohysterectomy. Here, we report the isolation and full characterization of two novel lytic phages, viz. vB_EcoM_Uniso11 (ph0011) and vB_EcoM_Uniso21 (ph0021).

Longitudinal association of dietary carbohydrate quality with visceral fat deposition and other adiposity indicators.

Background & Aims: The quality of dietary carbohydrates rather than total carbohydrate intake may determine the accumulation of visceral fat; however, to date, few studies have examined the impact of diet on adiposity using specific imaging techniques. Thus, the aim of this prospective study was to investigate the association between concurrent changes in carbohydrate quality index (CQI) and objectively-quantified adiposity distribution over a year.

Methods: We analyzed a cohort of 1476 participants aged 55-75 years with overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome (MetS) from the PREDIMED-Plus randomized controlled trial.

Changes in the Profile of Antibiotic Prescriptions by Dentists in Brazil during the Pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people worldwide, including the scientific community, were insecure and fearful. The lack of vaccines at the beginning of the pandemic and the high mortality rate led to a search for alternative treatments for COVID-19. Among these proposals, a postulated activity of azithromycin was frequently studied in early treatment.

Evaluation of a multicomponent intervention consisting of education and feedback to reduce benzodiazepine prescriptions by general practitioners: The BENZORED hybrid type 1 cluster randomized controlled trial.

Background: Current benzodiazepine (BZD) prescription guidelines recommend short-term use to minimize the risk of dependence, cognitive impairment, and falls and fractures. However, many clinicians overprescribe BZDs and chronic use by patients is common. There is limited evidence on the effectiveness of interventions delivered by general practitioners (GPs) on reducing prescriptions and long-term use of BZDs.

Consumption Trends of Antibiotics in Brazil During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

In 2019, a new type of coronavirus emerged and spread to the rest of the world. Numerous drugs were identified as possible treatments. Among the candidates for possible treatment was azithromycin alone or in combination with other drugs.

Evaluating the Implementation of a Multicomponent Intervention Consisting of Education and Feedback on Reducing Benzodiazepine Prescriptions by General Practitioners: BENZORED Hybrid Type I Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: General practitioners (GPs) in developed countries widely prescribe benzodiazepines (BZDs) for their anxiolytic, hypnotic, and muscle-relaxant effects. Treatment duration, however, is rarely limited, and this results in a significant number of chronic users. Long-term BZD use is associated with cognitive impairment, falls with hip fractures, traffic accidents, and increased mortality.

Feasibility of De-Escalation Implementation for Positive Blood Cultures in Patients With Sepsis: A Prospective Cohort Study.

The aim of the present study was to determine whether de-escalation guided by blood cultures for patients with a diagnosis of sepsis, severe sepsis or septic shock reduces mortality, and antimicrobial drug resistance (ADR). A prospective, single-center, cohort study was conducted with adults admitted to the ICU with a diagnosis of sepsis, severe sepsis, or septic shock at a public hospital in Sorocaba, State of São Paulo, Brazil, from January 2013 to December 2013. We excluded patients who had negative blood cultures.

[Methicillin-resistant in the Americas: systematic review and metanalysis of prevalence in food-producing animals resistente a la meticilina en la Región de las Américas: revisión sistemática y metanálisis de la prevalencia en la actividad agropecuaria].

Objective: To determine the prevalence of methicillin-resistant (MRSA) in animals used to produce foods in the Americas.

Method: A systematic literature review was performed in the following databases: Scopus, Web of Science, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Virtual Health Library. Articles published in the past 10 years, without language limits, were selected.

Evaluation of Microbiota and Weight Alterations After the Administration of Tetracycline and Lactobacillus gasseri in Rats.

Obesity is one of the largest current public health problems. Recent studies suggest that persistent changes in the intestinal microbiota (dysbiosis) can eventually lead to obesity. A stable core of intestinal microbiota exists, primarily composed of the phyla Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes, but their proportions can be altered by antibiotics.

Isotemporal substitution of inactive time with physical activity and time in bed: cross-sectional associations with cardiometabolic health in the PREDIMED-Plus study.

Background: This study explored the association between inactive time and measures of adiposity, clinical parameters, obesity, type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome components. It further examined the impact of reallocating inactive time to time in bed, light physical activity (LPA) or moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) on cardio-metabolic risk factors, including measures of adiposity and body composition, biochemical parameters and blood pressure in older adults.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from 2189 Caucasian men and women (age 55-75 years, BMI 27-40 Kg/m) from the PREDIMED-Plus study (http://www.

Kawasaki Disease and the Use of the Rotavirus Vaccine in Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

The vaccine against the rotavirus is an effective measure in reducing hospitalizations and mortality caused by the virus. However, its use can result in serious adverse effects. The available evidence on Kawasaki disease has not yet been reported in the literature.

Adverse Events in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis and Psoriatic Arthritis Receiving Long-Term Biological Agents in a Real-Life Setting.

Biological agents used for the treatment of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are associated with serious adverse effects (SAEs). Although several biologics have demonstrated good efficacy and tolerability in short-term trials, treatment guidelines recommend them as third line therapies due to a relative lack of long-term safety data. To determine the frequency and severity of adverse effects associated with the long-term use of biologics in the treatment of PsA and RA, and possible risk factors for such events in a real-life setting.

Prospects for the Use of New Technologies to Combat Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria.

The increasing use of antibiotics is being driven by factors such as the aging of the population, increased occurrence of infections, and greater prevalence of chronic diseases that require antimicrobial treatment. The excessive and unnecessary use of antibiotics in humans has led to the emergence of bacteria resistant to the antibiotics currently available, as well as to the selective development of other microorganisms, hence contributing to the widespread dissemination of resistance genes at the environmental level. Due to this, attempts are being made to develop new techniques to combat resistant bacteria, among them the use of strictly lytic bacteriophage particles, CRISPR-Cas, and nanotechnology.

ABCDE and ABCDEF care bundles: A systematic review protocol of the implementation process in intensive care units.

Background: The awakening and breathing coordination of daily sedation and ventilator removal trials, delirium monitoring and management, and early mobility and exercise (ABCDE) and assessment, prevent and manage pain, both spontaneous awakening and spontaneous breathing trials, choice of analgesia and sedation, assess, prevent and manage delirium, early mobility and exercise, family engagement (ABCDEF) bundles are part of the science of the liberation of the intensive care unit (ICU). There are not enough studies that have evaluated the effectiveness and safety of the implementation of these bundles. This study will analyze the implementation process, estimate their effectiveness and safety, and identify barriers, facilitators and attitudes that have influenced the implementation process.

Intervention to reduce benzodiazepine prescriptions in primary care, study protocol of a hybrid type 1 cluster randomised controlled trial: the BENZORED study.

Introduction: Benzodiazepines (BZDs) are mainly used to treat anxiety and sleep disorders, and are often prescribed for long durations, even though prescription guidelines recommend short-term use due to the risk of dependence, cognitive impairment, and falls and fractures. Education of general practitioners (GPs) regarding the prescription of BZDs may reduce the overuse and of these drugs.The aims of this study are to analyse the effectiveness of an intervention targeted to GPs to reduce BZD prescription and evaluate the implementation process.

Obesity: A New Adverse Effect of Antibiotics?

Since the introduction of antibiotics, they have been used freely, with their prescription occurring almost always when they were not necessary. The other major form of contact between humans and antibiotics, now unintentionally, is with the large amount of these drugs in the environment and in our food. The relationship between antibiotic use and the development of obesity has become increasingly evident and apparent in humans, with some authors clearly establishing the relationship between the large-scale use of antibiotics in the past 70 years and the "epidemic" of obesity that has occurred in parallel, almost as an adverse epidemiological effect.

Biotechnological applications of bacteriophages: State of the art.

Bacteriophage particles are the most abundant biological entities on our planet, infecting specific bacterial hosts in every known environment and being major drivers of bacterial adaptive evolution. The study of bacteriophage particles potentially sheds light on the development of new biotechnology products. Bacteriophage therapy, although not new, makes use of strictly lytic phage particles as an alternative in the antimicrobial treatment of resistant bacterial infections and is being rediscovered as a safe method due to the fact that these biological entities devoid of any metabolic machinery do not have affinity to eukaryotic cells.

Alternatives to overcoming bacterial resistances: State-of-the-art.

Worldwide, bacterial resistance to chemical antibiotics has reached such a high level that endangers public health. Presently, the adoption of alternative strategies that promote the elimination of resistant microbial strains from the environment is of utmost importance. This review discusses and analyses several (potential) alternative strategies to current chemical antibiotics.

Profile of infections and antimicrobial treatment among burn-injury patients.

Infections are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality among burn-injury patients. Even in the absence of documented infection, antibiotics are often given to burn-injury patients at the beginning of treatment, an empirical measure in response to signs and symptoms of infection. The choice of antimicrobial therapy for these patients should be based on technical criteria, based on laboratory findings, at the risk of further increasing antimicrobial resistance levels.

Prescription of benzodiazepines for adults and older adults from a mental health clinic.

The aim of this study was to compare benzodiazepine (bzd) prescriptions for adults and older adults regarding appropriate use indicator. It is a cross-sectional study for collecting data on patients treated at the City's Mental Health Clinic in Sorocaba/SP, between March and December 2013. Appropriate use indicators were used: appropriate drug, with adequate posology and period of use; as well as the use of a single bzd, as anxiolytic for less than 3 months in depression treatment with antidepressants, use for less than 2 months if associated to an antidepressant and no use of long-acting bzd in older adults.

Risk Factors for Foot Amputation in Patients Hospitalized for Diabetic Foot Infection.

The aim of this study was to identify and quantify risk factors for amputation in diabetic patients hospitalized for foot infections. This cross-sectional study comprised 100 patients with diabetic infectious complications in the lower limbs. The variables investigated were related to diabetes, infection, and treatment compliance.