Evaluation of Fluconazole versus Echinocandins for Treatment of Candidemia Caused by Susceptible Common Species: A Propensity Score Matching Analysis.

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of fluconazole and echinocandins in the treatment of candidemia caused by both fluconazole- and echinocandin-susceptible common species. A retrospective study which enrolled adult candidemia patients ≥19 years diagnosed at a tertiary care hospital in the Republic of Korea from 2013 to 2018 was conducted. Common species were defined as , , and .

Real-world experience of how chlorhexidine bathing affects the acquisition and incidence of vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) in a medical intensive care unit with VRE endemicity: a prospective interrupted time-series study.

Background: Critically ill patients in intensive care units (ICUs) often acquire opportunistic infections or are colonized by vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), which limits therapeutic options and results in high case-fatality rates. In clinical practice, the beneficial effects of universal chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) bathing on the control of VRE remain unclear. This study aimed to investigate whether 2% CHG daily bathing reduced the acquisition of VRE in the setting of a medical ICU (MICU) with VRE endemicity.

Report of the Korean Society of Infectious Diseases Roundtable Discussion on Responses to the Measles Outbreaks in Korea in 2019.

During the 2019 domestic measles outbreak in Korea, measles occurred in healthcare workers with two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine, and the strict application of the Occupational Safety and Health Act required medical institutions to identify healthcare workers' immunity to measles and vaccinate the susceptible pockets. In response to the frontline medical institutions' request to review the measles recommendations and guidelines, the Korean Society of Infectious Diseases held a roundtable discussion on the causes of measles outbreak, timing of vaccinations, antibody tests, and booster vaccinations for healthcare workers, and financial support from the government and municipality as well as response strategies against the outbreak in healthcare settings. In Korea, the seroprevalence of measles is decreasing in the vaccine-induced immunity group during the maintenance of measles elimination over several years.

Risk factors of septic shock development and thirty-day mortality with a predictive model in adult candidemia patients in intensive care units.

Background: This study aimed to investigate factors associated with septic shock development and 30-day mortality outcome with a prediction model among adult candidemia patients in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted among patients admitted to the ICU from 2009 to 2018 at a tertiary care medical centre. The study subjects included adult patients ≥ 19 years with candidemia treated with antifungal agent for ≥ 3 days.

Epidemiological Trends of Candidemia and the Impact of Adherence to the Candidemia Guideline: Six-Year Single-Center Experience.

This study aimed to investigate the epidemiology of candidemia and evaluate the impact of adherence to the candidemia guideline defined by the European Confederation of Medical Mycology Quality of Clinical Candidemia Management (EQUAL) Candida score. Adult candidemia patients ≥ 19 years diagnosed at a tertiary care hospital in the Republic of Korea from 2013 to 2018 were enrolled (period 1 2013-2015, period 2 2016-2018). There was a total of 223 patients.

Early Safety Monitoring of COVID-19 Vaccines in Healthcare Workers.

Hospital-based surveillance for adverse events was conducted on healthcare workers after they received the first dose of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine. Among the two new platform vaccines (messenger RNA- and adenoviral vector-based vaccines), the rates of systemic adverse events were significantly higher among adenovirus-vectored vaccine recipients. Fatigue (87.

The role of smart monitoring digital health care system based on smartphone application and personal health record platform for patients diagnosed with coronavirus disease 2019.

Background: The massive outbreak of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Daegu city and Gyeongsangbuk-do, Republic of Korea (ROK), caused the exponential increase in new cases exceeding 5000 within 6 weeks. Therefore, the community treatment center (CTC) with a digital health care monitoring system based on the smartphone application and personal health record platform (PHR) was implemented. Thus, we report our experience in one of the CTCs to investigate the role of CTC and the feasibility of the digital health care monitoring system in the COVID-19 pandemic.

CD8 T Cells Directed Against a Peptide Epitope Derived From Peptidoglycan-Associated Lipoprotein of Confer Disease Protection.

, an intracellular bacterium, may cause life-threatening pneumonia in immunocompromised individuals. Mononuclear cells and antibodies have been reported to be associated with the host defense response against This study is to determine whether peptidoglycan-associated lipoprotein (PAL)-specific CD8 T cells are directly associated with protection against , with a focus on potential epitopes. Synthetic peptides derived from PAL of were obtained and tested through in and cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) assays for immunogenicity.

Prevalence and risk factors for endogenous fungal endophthalmitis in adult patients with candidemia at a tertiary care hospital in the Republic of Korea over 13 years.

Background: Endogenous fungal endophthalmitis (EFE) is a critical complication of candidemia. We conducted a study to investigate the prevalence and risk factors for EFE.

Methods: Adult candidemia patients≥19years who underwent an ophthalmological examination at a tertiary care hospital in the Republic of Korea from 2006 to 2018 were enrolled.

Survival Trend of HIV/AIDS Patients Starting Antiretroviral Therapy in South Korea between 2001 and 2015.

Purpose: In the recent antiretroviral therapy (ART) era, a large proportion of Korean patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection were shown to have low CD4 cell counts at diagnosis and during ART initiation. We investigated the survival trends in patients living with HIV/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in Korea who started ART in the 2000s, and evaluated the risk factors for mortality to elucidate the association between survival and low CD4 cell counts at ART initiation.

Materials And Methods: Patients with HIV infection who were aged >18 years and had started ART between 2001 and 2015 in the Korean HIV/AIDS cohort study were enrolled.

Anidulafungin Versus Micafungin in the Treatment of Candidemia in Adult Patients.

Background: Echinocandins are recommended for the treatment of invasive candidiasis and candidemia. However, there are few studies comparing anidulafungin and micafungin in terms of efficacy and safety. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical efficacy and safety between anidulafungin and micafungin treatment for adult patients with candidemia.

Innovative countermeasures can maintain cancer care continuity during the coronavirus disease-2019 pandemic in Korea.

Background: Even though Korea was known to have the highest number of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) infection in the early phase of the pandemic, Korea was able to successfully flatten the curve in a short period of time without extreme measures. We compared the status of cancer management before and after COVID-19 and analysed how cancer care continuity was maintained in Korea.

Patients And Methods: We investigated the medical records on the number of cancer diagnosis, cancer surgery, radiation therapy and scheduled chemotherapy conducted in Korea University Anam Hospital from January 1 to April 30, 2019 and from the same period in 2020.

Romo1-Derived Antimicrobial Peptide Is a New Antimicrobial Agent against Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria in a Murine Model of Sepsis.

To overcome increasing bacterial resistance to conventional antibiotics, many antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) derived from host defense proteins have been developed. However, there are considerable obstacles to their application to systemic infections because of their low bioavailability. In the present study, we developed an AMP derived from Romo1 (AMPR-11) that exhibits a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity.

Korean Registry for Improving Sepsis Survival (KISS): Protocol for a Multicenter Cohort of Adult Patients with Sepsis or Septic Shock.

Sepsis is one of the significant causes of morbidity and mortality. The burden caused by sepsis has continued to increase in recent years in the Korea, highlighting the urgent need for the implementation of strategies to improve sepsis treatment outcomes. We therefore designed a web-based sepsis registry system ("Korean Registry for Improving Sepsis Survival" [KISS]) protocol to be used in hospitals in the Korea for evaluation of the epidemiology and clinical characteristics of patients with sepsis, via an analysis of outcome predictors.

Characteristics of Isolates from Stool Samples of Patients with Liver Abscess Caused by Hypervirulent .

Background: Hypervirulent (hvKP) has been the most significant pathogen for liver abscesses in East Asia including the Republic of Korea (ROK). Although gastrointestinal colonization of may cross the intestinal barrier to invade the liver, characteristics of gastrointestinal carriage of hvKP liver abscess patients in the ROK are not well known.

Methods: Characteristics of isolated from stool samples and liver aspirate samples of patients with hvKP liver abscess at a tertiary care hospital in the ROK between 2017 and 2018 were evaluated.

Determining the clinical significance of co-colonization of vancomycin-resistant enterococci and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in the intestinal tracts of patients in intensive care units: a case-control study.

Background: The emergence of vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) has become a global concern for public health. The proximity of vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE) and methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) is considered to be one of the foremost risk factors for the development of VRSA.

Significance of Increased Rapid Treatment from HIV Diagnosis to the First Antiretroviral Therapy in the Recent 20 Years and Its Implications: the Korea HIV/AIDS Cohort Study.

From December 2006 to December 2016, 1,429 patients enrolled in the Korea human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) Cohort Study were investigated. Based on the year of diagnosis, the time interval between HIV diagnosis and initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) was analyzed by dividing it into 2 years. The more recent the diagnosis, the more likely rapid treatment was initiated ( < 0.

Historical Review of Leptospirosis in the Korea (1945 - 2015).

Leptospirosis is a widespread worldwide zoonosis. Human leptospirosis was first identified in the Korea in 1984 as the cause of "epidemic pulmonary hemorrhagic fever of unknown etiology" that occurred sporadically or in outbreaks. The major outbreaks, leading to some deaths, mainly involved rice field farmers who worked in wet and muddy rice paddies following floods or heavy rainfalls.

Clinical characteristics and chest computed tomography findings of smear-positive and smear-negative pulmonary tuberculosis in hospitalized adult patients.

Pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) continues to be one of the significant public health threats with significant morbidity and mortality. The present study was aimed to assess the clinical characteristics and chest computed tomography (CT) findings of smear-positive and smear-negative PTB in hospitalized adult patients.Hospitalized adult patients diagnosed with PTB by positive Mycobacterium tuberculosis growth on acid-fast bacilli culture from bronchial aspiration or sputum from 2015 to 2017 were reviewed.

Development for Clinical Use of a Multiplexed Immunoassay Using Sputum Samples for Streptococcus pneumoniae: a Non-Culture-Based Approach for Serotype-Specific Detection.

The multiplexed immunoassay (MIA) is an automated, monoclonal antibody-based serotyping assay that uses culture lysates of This study describes the development and validation of applying MIA directly to sputum samples for the serotype-specific detection of Sputum optimization involved liquefaction and fractionation. The subjects included 173 adult patients from whom both pneumococcal isolates cultured from sputum samples and the corresponding sputum samples were available at the Korea University Hospital from March 2012 to June 2015. Pneumococcal lysates and the sputum fraction were separately evaluated by MIA with a set A reaction to identify 27 serotypes (24 vaccine serotypes and serotypes 6C, 6D, and 11E).

Active surveillance at the time of hospital admission for multidrug-resistant microorganisms among patients who had recently been hospitalized at health care facilities.

Background: This study aimed to investigate the epidemiology of multidrug-resistant microorganism (MDRO) carriage at hospital admission and to identify risk factors for MDRO influx into hospital settings.

Methods: This cohort study was conducted at a 1,051-bed university-affiliated hospital in the Republic of Korea between July 1 and December 31, 2017. Active surveillance for MDRO carriage was performed within 48 hours of hospitalization in all adult patients who had prior hospitalization within the preceding 3 months.

Direct effectiveness of pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine against invasive pneumococcal disease and non-bacteremic pneumococcal pneumonia in elderly population in the era of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine: A case-control study.

Background: While herd effects and serotype replacement by childhood pneumococcal protein conjugated vaccines (PCVs) continues to accumulate worldwide, direct effectiveness of 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) against pneumococcal diseases in the elderly has been challenged. We estimated the direct effectiveness of PPV23 in the elderly population.

Methods: For a hospital-based case-control study, cases of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) and non-bacteremic pneumococcal pneumonia (NBPP) (adults ≥ 65 years) were identified in 14 hospitals participated in the pneumococcal surveillance program from March 2013 to October 2015, following implementation of PPV23 national immunization program (NIP) for the elderly in the Republic of Korea.