The role of chronic suppressive antibiotics therapy in superficial drive line infection relapse of left ventricular assist devices: A retrospective cohort from a tertiary care center.

Introduction: Drive line infections (DLIs) are common complications of left ventricular assist devices (LVADs). Data on use of suppression antibiotic therapy are limited.

Methods: We performed a retrospective review of 451 patients who underwent LVAD placement from January 2009 to May 2015.

Epidemiology of Left Ventricular Assist Device Infections: Findings From a Large Nonregistry Cohort.

Background: Infection is a major complication during circulatory support with a left ventricular assist device (VAD). Changes in device characteristics and treatment practices in the last decade can affect the epidemiology of infection. The International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT) has published recommendations on the prevention and management of VAD infections, but data to support these recommendations remain sparse.

HOPON (Hyperbaric Oxygen for the Prevention of Osteoradionecrosis): A Randomized Controlled Trial of Hyperbaric Oxygen to Prevent Osteoradionecrosis of the Irradiated Mandible After Dentoalveolar Surgery.

Purpose: Hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) has been advocated in the prevention and treatment of osteoradionecrosis (ORN) of the jaw after head and neck radiation therapy, but supporting evidence is weak. The aim of this randomized trial was to establish the benefit of HBO in the prevention of ORN after high-risk surgical procedures to the irradiated mandible.

Methods And Materials: HOPON was a randomized, controlled, phase 3 trial.

Implanted vascular access device options: a focused review on safety and outcomes.

Implantable vascular access devices are frequently used in patients who have poor peripheral venous access. These devices can be partially implanted as tunneled and nontunneled central catheters, or they can be fully implanted as ports. Compared with long-term catheters, implanted ports have lower infection rates and improved perceptions of quality of life, but complications still occur in 2% to 18% of patients, frequently requiring removal of the device.

High-throughput sequencing of cerebrospinal fluid for diagnosis of chronic Propionibacterium acnes meningitis in an allogeneic stem cell transplant recipient.

Background: A 40-year-old man with chronic myelogenous leukemia presented multiple times over a period of 3 years with episodes of confusion, wide-based gait and falls because of recurrent hydrocephalus despite repeated therapeutic lumbar punctures. These problems occurred in the context of persistent cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pleocytosis and leptomeningeal enhancement. Extensive diagnostic workups and therapeutic trials had failed to identify a clinically plausible cause or produce any significant improvement in the CSF and neuroimaging abnormalities.