Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy for capsular serotype classification in pediatric patients with invasive infections.

Invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, particularly in the pediatric population (children and infants), with high rates of hospitalization and death. This study aimed to create and validate a classifier for serotyping using Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy as a rapid alternative to the classical serotyping technique. In this study, a database comprising 76 clinical isolates, including 18 serotypes (predominantly serotypes 19A, 6C, and 3) of from pediatric patients with IPD, was tested at a tertiary pediatric hospital in southern Brazil during 2016-2023.

Thymidine-dependent Staphylococcus aureus and lung function in patients with cystic fibrosis: a 10-year retrospective case-control study.

Objective: Thymidine-dependent small-colony variants (TD-SCVs) of Staphylococcus aureus are being isolated with increasing frequency from patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between TD-SCV isolation and pulmonary function in patients with CF, as well as to determine whether the emergence of TD-SCVs was associated with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) use and with coinfection with other microorganisms.

Methods: This was a retrospective case-control study including patients with CF who visited the Clinical Hospital Complex of the Federal University of Paraná, in Curitiba, Brazil, between 2013 and 2022.

Comparative genomics of IncQ1 plasmids carrying bla variants from clinical and environmental sources in Brazil.

IncQ-type plasmids have become important vectors in the dissemination of bla among different bacterial genera and species from different environments around the world, and studies estimating the occurrence of Guiana extended-spectrum (GES)-type β-lactamases are gaining prominence. We analyzed the genetic aspects of two IncQ1 plasmids harboring different bla variants from human and environmental sources. The bla variants were identified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in Aeromonas veronii isolated from hospital effluent and Klebsiella variicola isolated from a rectal swab of a patient admitted to the cardiovascular intensive care unit in a different hospital.

High-risk clones of carbapenem resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae recovered from pediatric patients in Southern Brazil.

Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) exhibit high mortality rates in pediatric patients and usually belong to international high-risk clones. This study aimed to investigate the molecular epidemiology and carbapenem resistance mechanisms of K. pneumoniae isolates recovered from pediatric patients, and correlate them with phenotypical data.

Outbreak of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium ST1133 in paediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia from southern Brazil.

Objectives: We aimed to investigate an outbreak of vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VREfm) in paediatric patients from Hospital Pequeno Príncipe. The susceptibility profile was determined, and whole-genome sequencing (WGS) was used to analyse the genetic context of the strains.

Methods: Five VREfm isolates were recovered from sterile sites and surveillance cultures of two paediatric patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Lower airway microbiota and decreasing lung function in young Brazilian cystic fibrosis patients with pulmonary Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas infection.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disease caused by mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene that leads to respiratory complications and mortality. Studies have shown shifts in the respiratory microbiota during disease progression in individuals with CF. In addition, CF patients experience short cycles of acute intermittent aggravations of symptoms called pulmonary exacerbations, which may be characterized by a decrease in lung function and weight loss.

Novel Insights into Mobilome Reveal Extensive Genetic Variation in Hospital Effluents.

Mobile genetic elements contribute to the emergence and spread of multidrug-resistant bacteria by enabling the horizontal transfer of acquired antibiotic resistance among different bacterial species and genera. This study characterizes the genetic backbone of in spp. and Klebsiella spp.

Emergence of Thymidine-Dependent Staphylococcus aureus Small-Colony Variants in Cystic Fibrosis Patients in Southern Brazil.

We characterized Staphylococcus aureus small-colony variant (SCV) strains isolated from cystic fibrosis (CF) patients in southern Brazil. Smaller colonies of S. aureus were isolated from respiratory samples collected consecutively from 225 CF patients from July 2013 to November 2016.

The Xpert® MTB/RIF diagnostic test for pulmonary and extrapulmonary tuberculosis in immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients: Benefits and experiences over 2 years in different clinical contexts.

Xpert® MTB/RIF has been widely used for tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis in Brazil, since 2014. This prospective observational study aimed to evaluate the performance of Xpert in different contexts during a two-year period: (i) laboratory and clinical/epidemiological diagnosis; (ii) HIV-positive and -negative populations; (iii) type of specimens: pulmonary and extrapulmonary. Overall, 924 specimens from 743 patients were evaluated.

First Genome Sequences of Two Multidrug-Resistant var. Isolates From Pediatric Patients With Candidemia.

is a complex formed by , var. , and . Members of this complex are opportunistic pathogens closely related to , , and , all members of a multidrug-resistant clade.

Molecular Epidemiology of Multidrug-Resistant Isolates in a Brazilian Tertiary Hospital.

Multidrug-resistant (MDR) (Kp) is a major bacterial pathogen responsible for hospital outbreaks worldwide, mainly via the spread of high-risk clones and epidemic resistance plasmids. In this study, we evaluated the molecular epidemiology and β-lactam resistance mechanisms of MDR-Kp strains isolated in a Brazilian academic care hospital. We used whole-genome sequencing to study drug resistance mechanisms and their relationships with a carbapenemase-producing (KPC) Kp outbreak.

Invasive candidiasis: Risk factor for mortality in a pediatric tertiary care hospital in south of Brazil.

Background: Invasive candidiasis (IC) is a major cause of morbimortality in children. Previous studies described the clinical characteristics and risk factors for this infection; however, limited data are available on the predictors of mortality in these patients. In this context, we evaluated the risk factors associated with death due to IC in a pediatric tertiary care hospital in South of Brazil.

Validation of multiplex PCR for the diagnosis of acute bacterial meningitis in culture negative cerebrospinal fluid.

Introduction: This study evaluated the operational characteristics of the multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from patients with cellular and biochemical characteristics of acute bacterial meningitis and positive or negative CSF cultures.

Methods: Multiplex PCR was performed for 36 CSF samples: culture-proven acute bacterial meningitis (n = 7), culture-negative acute bacterial meningitis (n = 17), lymphocytic meningitis (n = 8), and normal CSF (n = 4). The operational characteristics of multiplex PCR were evaluated with definite and probable bacterial meningitis, using culture positive, cytological and biochemical CSF characteristics as the gold standard.

Assessment of clinical and epidemiological characteristics of patients with and without sepsis in intensive care units of a tertiary hospital.

Objective: To describe the clinical and epidemiological features of patients with and without sepsis at critical care units of a public hospital.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out from May 2012 to April 2013. Clinical and laboratory data of patients with and without sepsis in the intensive care units were reviewed of medical records.

Bacteremia and meningitis caused by OXA-23-producing Acinetobacter baumannii - molecular characterization and susceptibility testing for alternative antibiotics.

Background: Carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii infection is a concern in developing countries due to high incidence, few therapeutic options, and increasing costs.

Objective: Characterize and analyze the antibiotic susceptibility patterns of carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii isolates and evaluate clinical data of meningitis and bacteremia caused by this microorganism.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight: a promising alternative method of identifying the major coagulase-negative Staphylococci species.

Introduction.: This study aimed to evaluate different methods for differentiation of species of coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) that caused infections in hospitalized immunocompromised patients.

Methods.

Characterization of CTX-M enzymes, quinolone resistance determinants, and antimicrobial residues from hospital sewage, wastewater treatment plant, and river water.

Multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria are widespread in hospitals and have been increasingly isolated from aquatic environments. The aim of the present study was to characterize extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL) and quinolone-resistant Enterobacteriaceae from a hospital effluent, sanitary effluent, inflow sewage, aeration tank, and outflow sewage within a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), as well as river water upstream and downstream (URW and DRW, respectively), of the point where the WWTP treated effluent was discharged. β-lactamase (bla) genes, plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR), and quinolone resistance-determining regions (QRDRs) were assessed by amplification and sequencing in 55 ESBL-positive and/or quinolone-resistant isolates.

Risk factors for candidemia mortality in hospitalized children.

Objective: To evaluate risk factors associated with death due to bloodstream infection caused by Candida spp. in pediatric patients and evaluate the resistance to the main anti-fungal used in clinical practice.

Methods: This is a cross-sectional, observational, analytical study with retrospective collection that included 65 hospitalized pediatric patients with bloodstream infection by Candida spp.

Risk Adjustment for Congenital Heart Surgery Score as a Risk Factor for Candidemia in Children Undergoing Congenital Heart Defect Surgery.

Background: Candida species are the primary cause of invasive fungal infection in hospitalized children. There are few data on risk factors for postoperative candidemia in pediatric patients with congenital heart defects. This study aimed to identify risk factors for candidemia in patients with congenital heart defects who underwent cardiac surgery.

Polyphasic characterisation of Burkholderia cepaciacomplex species isolated from children with cystic fibrosis.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) patients with Burkholderia cepacia complex (Bcc) pulmonary infections have high morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to compare different methods for identification of Bcc species isolated from paediatric CF patients. Oropharyngeal swabs from children with CF were used to obtain isolates of Bcc samples to evaluate six different tests for strain identification.

Interferon-gamma release assay versus tuberculin skin test for latent tuberculosis infection among HIV patients in Brazil.

Setting: Patients HIV+ attending in a reference clinic, Southern Brazil.

Objective: To compare the interferon-gamma-release assay (IGRA - QuantiFERON(®) TB Gold In-Tube) with the tuberculin skin test (TST - PPD-Rt 23) for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in patients with HIV.

Design: Cohort study.

Distribution of extended-spectrum β-lactamase types in a Brazilian tertiary hospital.

Introduction: Epidemiological data on the prevalence of extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) are scarce in Brazil despite the fact that these data are essential for empirical treatment and control measures. The objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of different ESBLs by type and distribution in a tertiary hospital in southern Brazil.

Methods: We evaluated 1,827 enterobacterial isolates between August 2003 and March 2008 isolated from patients at a tertiary hospital.

MALDI-TOF: a useful tool for laboratory identification of uncommon glucose non-fermenting Gram-negative bacteria associated with cystic fibrosis.

The predisposition of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) for recurrent pulmonary infections can result in poor prognosis of the disease. Although the clinical significance in CF of micro-organisms, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Haemophilus influenzae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, is well established, the implication of uncommon glucose non-fermenting Gram-negative bacilli (UGNF-GNB) in respiratory samples from CF patients is still unclear. Because of limitations of traditional methods used in most clinical laboratories, the accurate identification of these microbes is a challenge.