Characterization of hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates in Belgium.

Hypervirulent Klebsiella pneumoniae (hvKp) raised concern worldwide. We studied 22 hvKp clinical invasive isolates referred to the Belgian national reference laboratory between 2014 and 2020. Sixty-four percent of the isolates expressed K2 capsular serotype and belonged to 7 different MLST lineages, while 32% expressed K1 (all belonging to ST23) and were associated with liver abscesses.

Comparison of the QuantiFERON-TB® Gold Plus on LIAISON® XL and T-SPOT.TB for the diagnosis of latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in a low tuberculosis incidence population.

The current study compared the QuantiFERON-TB® Gold Plus on LIAISON® XL to the T-SPOT.TB for the diagnosis of latent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection on 125 patient samples. A high agreement of qualitative results (90%) was observed between both methods with 3% major discrepancies, half of which were false negative results with the T-SPOT.

Evaluation of the SARS-CoV-2 positivity ratio and upper respiratory tract viral load among asymptomatic individuals screened before hospitalization or surgery in Flanders, Belgium.

Introduction: The incidence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections in the Belgian community is mainly estimated based on test results of patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19)-like symptoms. The aim of this study was to investigate the evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) positivity ratio and distribution of viral loads within a cohort of asymptomatic patients screened prior hospitalization or surgery, stratified by age category.

Materials/methods: We retrospectively studied data on SARS-CoV-2 real-time RT-PCR detection in respiratory tract samples of asymptomatic patients screened pre-hospitalization or pre-surgery in nine Belgian hospitals located in Flanders over a 12-month period (1 April 2020-31 March 2021).

SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence survey among health care providers in a Belgian public multiple-site hospital.

Although the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic is lasting for more than 1 year, the exposition risks of health-care providers are still unclear. Available evidence is conflicting. We investigated the prevalence of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 in the staff of a large public hospital with multiple sites in the Antwerp region of Belgium.