Meta-analyses on behavioral interventions to reduce the risk of transmission of HIV.

Different behavioral interventions have found to be efficacious in reducing high-risk sexual activity. Interventions have been evaluated in both original research and meta-analytic reviews. Most of the studies have shown that interventions are efficacious among different study populations.

Meta-analytical studies on the epidemiology, prevention, and treatment of human immunodeficiency virus infection.

Since the beginning of the epidemic, extensive research has been conducted in the field of HIV infection. Original research and subsequent meta-analyses have contributed to a better understanding of the disease. Epidemiologic research has shown, for example, that male circumcision reduces the risk of female-to-male transmission.

New antibiotic agents for bloodstream infections.

Infections due to multidrug-resistant pathogens have shown a dramatic worldwide increase in prevalence. Bloodstream infections (BSIs) represent an important cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalised patients. Research in the field led to the introduction of several novel antibiotic agents in the fight against bacterial pathogens.

Multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections: the emerging threat and potential novel treatment options.

Gram-negative bacterial infections constitute an emerging threat because of the development of multidrug-resistant organisms. There is a relative shortage of new drugs in the antimicrobial development pipeline that have been tested in vitro and evaluated in clinical studies. Antibiotics that are in the pipeline for the treatment of serious Gram-negative bacterial infections include the cephalosporins, ceftobiprole, ceftarolin and FR-264205.

Urinary tract infections in patients with urinary diversion.

Several surgical techniques have been used to provide urinary diversion after radical cystectomy. The noncontinent type of urinary diversion (using an intestinal conduit) and the continent urinary diversion (ureterosigmoidostomy or construction of an intestinal pouch that serves as a deposit of urine) were used commonly in the past, leading to a cumulative considerable number of patients encountered in clinical practice. The orthotopic urinary diversion (neobladder) has been used widely during the last years.

From conference abstract to full paper: differences between data presented in conferences and journals.

Background: We studied the type and frequency of differences between data presented in conference abstracts and subsequent published papers in the fields of infectious diseases and microbiology.

Methods: We reviewed all abstracts from the first session of 7 of 15 major research categories presented in the 1999 and 2000 Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. For each selected pair of abstract and related published paper, two independent investigators performed a detailed data comparison.

Estimates of global production in cardiovascular diseases research.

Objective: To evaluate the contribution of different world regions in cardiovascular research production.

Methods: The world was divided into 9 regions based on a combination of geographic, economic and scientific criteria. Using the Medline database, we retrieved articles from 77 journals included in the "Cardiac and Cardiovascular Systems" category of the "Journal Citation Reports" database for the period 1995-2002.

Worldwide trends in quantity and quality of published articles in the field of infectious diseases.

Background: Trying to confront with the widespread burden of infectious diseases, the society worldwide invests considerably on research. We evaluated the contribution of different world regions in research production in Infectious Diseases.

Methods: Using the online Pubmed database we retrieved articles from 38 journals included in the "Infectious Diseases" category of the "Journal Citation Reports" database of the Institute for Scientific Information for the period 1995-2002.

Narrative review: diseases that masquerade as infectious cellulitis.

For cellulitis that does not respond to conventional antimicrobial treatment, clinicians should consider, among other explanations, several noninfectious disorders that might masquerade as infectious cellulitis. Diseases that commonly masquerade as this condition include thrombophlebitis, contact dermatitis, insect stings, drug reactions, eosinophilic cellulitis (the Wells syndrome), gouty arthritis, carcinoma erysipelatoides, familial Mediterranean fever, and foreign-body reactions. Diseases that uncommonly masquerade as infectious cellulitis include urticaria, lymphedema, lupus erythematosus, sarcoidosis, lymphoma, leukemia, Paget disease, and panniculitis.