Diarrheal diseases caused by enteric pathogens are a significant public health concern. It is widely considered that close contact between persons, poor hygiene, and consumption of contaminated food are the primary causes of gastroenteritis. Clinical microbiology laboratory observations indicate that the incidence of enteropathogenic microorganisms may have been reduced in Denmark during the COVID-19 pandemic.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEosinophilic granulocytes are normally present in low numbers in the bloodstream. Patients with an increased number of eosinophilic granulocytes in the differential count (eosinophilia) are common and can pose a clinical challenge because conditions with eosinophilia occur in all medical specialties. The diagnostic approach must be guided by a thorough medical history, supported by specific tests to guide individualized treatment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStrongyloidiasis is a disease caused by the intestinal helminth When the immune system of infected individuals is compromised, larvae may migrate from the gastrointestinal tract to other tissues, causing hyperinfection syndrome, which has a reported mortality of 71%. In this case, we report a patient with hyperinfection syndrome with central nervous system (CNS) involvement. An elderly South East Asian male tourist presented with pulmonary symptoms, fever and infiltrates on chest X-ray.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Patients with eosinophilia (an increased number of eosinophilic granulocytes > 0.5 × 10⁸/l in the blood) are encountered in all medical specialties and frequently need thorough workup to identify the eliciting causes and decide whether treatment is indicated. In Denmark, highly specialised centres for eosinophilic diseases or conditions have been established to provide a foundation for the management of complicated cases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn this case report, a tumour was found in the coecum under a colonoscopy, performed after positive screening test for colorectal cancer in an asymptomatic 61-year-old man. Pathology from biopsies showed numerous trophozoites in the lamina propria, compatible with Entamoeba histolytica. In faecal samples, E.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) rapidly reached pandemic levels. Sufficient testing for SARS-CoV-2 has remained essential for tracking and containing the virus. SARS-CoV-2 testing capabilities are still limited in many countries.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe report human infection with simian Plasmodium cynomolgi in a tourist from Denmark who had visited forested areas in peninsular Malaysia and Thailand in August and September 2018. Because P. cynomolgi may go unnoticed by standard malaria diagnostics, this malaria species may be more common in humans than was previously thought.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMalaria is traditionally diagnosed by blood smear microscopy, which requires continuous resource-demanding training. In areas with only a few cases of malaria, a simple and rapid test that can reliably exclude malaria could significantly reduce the need for microscopy and training. We evaluated whether loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) for screening malaria parasites could reduce the workload in the diagnosis of malaria.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRapid diagnostics within clinical microbiology is more required, as hospitals need to be more effective. Tests for multi-resistant organisms, influenza virus and life-threatening diseases such as malaria and meningitis are warranted. This review describes the advances within rapid diagnostics and the impact on patient care.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Bacteria with common microbiological and clinical characteristics are often recognized as a particular group. The acronym HACEK stands for five fastidious genera associated with infective endocarditis (Haemophilus, Aggregatibacter, Cardiobacterium, Eikenella, and Kingella). Data on the epidemiology of HACEK are sparse.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTwo studies were done on cryptosporidiosis in children. A retrospective survey showed that from 2005 to 2015, Cryptosporidium species was detected by microscopy of stool from 0.25% of children with diarrhea.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHaemophilus influenzae is an important human pathogen usually susceptible to quinolones. Here we report the emergence of high-level ciprofloxacin-monoresistant H. influenzae in the Region of Southern Denmark.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDNA sequencing of the intergenic spacer (ITS) region was used to identify 53 blood culture isolates that had previously been designated to the bovis group streptococci and clinical data was collected retrospectively from patients' records using a standardized protocol. ITS sequencing identified 19 (35.8%) isolates as Streptococcus gallolyticus subsp.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: The incidence of cryptosporidiosis in Denmark is unknown. Here, we present the number of cases detected in the 2010-2014 period along with data on species and subtypes.
Methods: Complete national data retrieved from the Danish Microbiology Database and Statens Serum Institut (SSI) comprised test results on cryptosporidia detected by microscopy or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) between 1 January 2010 and 30 April 2014.
The diagnosis of amoebiasis caused by Entamoeba histolytica is traditionally based on microscopy. However, the specificity of this method may be questioned, especially in areas where infections by E. histolytica are rare.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCarriage of pig-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is known to occur in pig farmers. Zoonotic lineages of MRSA have been considered of low virulence and with limited capacity for inter-human spread. We present a case of family transmission of pig-associated MRSA ST398, which resulted in a severe infection in a newborn.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTwo cases involving polymicrobial culture-negative samples were investigated by 16S rRNA gene sequencing, with analysis of mixed chromatograms. Fusobacterium necrophorum, Prevotella intermedia and Streptococcus constellatus were identified from pleural fluid in a patient with Lemierre's syndrome and Neisseria meningitidis and Escherichia coli were identified from a petechia in a patient with meningococcal disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNocardia is a rare, but serious cause of infection in immunosuppressed patients. Pulmonal nocardiosis is the most frequent manifestation. The ability of Nocardia to disseminate haematogenously frequently causes infection in other organs and increases mortality.
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