Publications by authors named "Nina Handal"

Background: Klebsiella pneumoniae species complex (KpSC) bloodstream infections (BSIs) are associated with considerable morbidity and mortality, particularly in elderly and multimorbid patients. Multidrug-resistant (MDR) strains have been associated with poorer outcome. However, the clinical impact of KpSC phylogenetic lineages on BSI outcome is unclear.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study aimed to compare mortality rates and hospital stay lengths for patients with bloodstream infections (BSIs) caused by ESBL-producing bacteria versus those caused by non-ESBL bacteria.
  • - Results indicated no significant difference in 30-day mortality between the two groups, but a delay in effective antibiotic treatment was noted for the ESBL group, with effective treatment administered within 24 hours to only 55.2% of those patients compared to 86.8% in the non-ESBL group.
  • - For urinary tract-related BSIs, the ESBL group had a longer average hospital stay, increasing by two days, whereas no significant difference was found for BSIs from other sources.
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Introduction: A year into the pandemic, the knowledge of SARS-CoV-2 infection risks among healthcare workers remains limited. In this cross-sectional study, we examined whether healthcare workers with high exposure to Covid-19 patients had a higher risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection than other healthcare workers in a Norwegian University Hospital. We also investigated the prevalence of asymptomatic healthcare workers in a ward with a SARS-CoV-2 outbreak.

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Objectives: To compare the clinical and bacteriological outcomes of pivmecillinam treatment for community-acquired urinary tract infections (UTIs) caused by ESBL-producing Escherichia coli versus non-ESBL-producing E. coli in an outpatient setting.

Methods: A prospective, multicentre, observational cohort study of women aged ≥16 years, with pivmecillinam-treated community-acquired UTIs caused by E.

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Introduction: Targeted testing and treatment of latent TB infection (LTBI) are priorities on the global health agenda, but LTBI management remains challenging. We aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of the QuantiFERON TB-Gold (QFT) test for incident TB, focusing on the interferon (IFN)-γ level, when applied in routine practice in a low TB incidence setting.

Methods: In this large population-based prospective cohort, we linked QFT results in Norway (1 January 2009-30 June 2014) with national registry data (Norwegian Surveillance System for Infectious Diseases, Norwegian Prescription Database, Norwegian Patient Registry and Statistics Norway) to assess the prognostic value of QFT for incident TB.

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Bakgrunn: I norsk helsevesen gjennomføres omfattende tiltak for å hindre spredning av meticillinresistente Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Vi ønsket å undersøke hvor mange smitteoppsporinger som gjøres rundt nyoppdagede MRSA-tilfeller hos pasienter og ansatte i sykehus, og hvor ofte smitteoppsporingene fører til ytterligere funn hos helsepersonell.

Materiale Og Metode: I denne retrospektive observasjonsstudien bidro smittevernenhetene ved åtte helseforetak i landets fire helseregioner med opplysninger om MRSA-funn hos helsepersonell etter gjennomførte MRSA-smitteoppsporinger.

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The aims of this study were to describe the distribution of the most common erm genes in a collection of Norwegian Bacteroides isolates and to investigate whether the phenotypic tests for determining inducible clindamycin resistance among Bacteroides species recommended by EUCAST, NordicAST and the manufacturer of E-test, are effective. We investigated 175 unique Bacteroides isolates for the presence of erm(B), erm(F) and erm(G) genes, determined their minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) to clindamycin and categorised their susceptibility according to EUCAST breakpoints. 27 isolates were resistant to clindamycin.

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