Impact of neonatal intensive care bed configuration on rates of late-onset bacterial sepsis and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus colonization.

Background: Infections cause morbidity and mortality in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). The association between nursery design and nosocomial infections is unclear.

Objective: To determine whether rates of colonization by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), late-onset sepsis, and mortality are reduced in single-patient rooms.

Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli: a single-center, 11-year pediatric experience.

The aim of this study was to identify the best practices for the detection of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) in children with diarrheal illness treated at a tertiary care center, i.e., sorbitol-MacConkey (SMAC) agar culture, enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for Shiga toxin, or the simultaneous use of both methods.

Validation and implementation of the GeneXpert MRSA/SA blood culture assay in a pediatric setting.

Blood cultures positive for gram-positive cocci in clusters can pose a dilemma for empiric antimicrobial therapy because they could represent coagulase-negative staphylococcus or Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia. The GeneXpert MRSA/SA BC Assay (Cepheid, Sunnyvale, CA) is a polymerase chain reaction-based method for identifying S aureus and methicillin resistance that has been approved for use in adults, but data on its use in samples from pediatric patients is limited. We validated the Xpert MRSA/SA BC Assay for use with anaerobic and polymicrobial specimens from pediatric patients and implemented it for routine presumptive identification of S aureus in our pediatric hospital.

Deer sausage: a newly identified vehicle of transmission of Escherichia coli O157:H7.

Five Missouri patients infected with Escherichia coli O157:H7 were studied for an epidemiologically plausible association. Case isolates, case interviews, and pathogen and meat XbaI pulsed field electrophoresis patterns were consistent with the common source being contaminated, fermented deer sausage, a previously unrecognized mode of transmission for Escherichia coli O157:H7.

contribution of genetically restricted, methicillin-susceptible strains to the ongoing epidemic of community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus infections.

Background: Within the current worldwide epidemic of community-acquired Staphylococcus aureus infections, attention has focused on the role of methicillin-resistant strains. We characterize methicillin-susceptible strains that also contribute to this epidemic.

Methods: We tracked cultures from abscess specimens submitted to the microbiology laboratory at St.

Outbreak of Salmonella javiana infection at a children's hospital.

Objective: To determine the source of an outbreak of Salmonella javiana infection.

Design: Case-control study.

Participants: A total of 101 culture-confirmed cases and 540 epidemiologically linked cases were detected between May 26, 2003, and June 16, 2003, in hospital employees, patients, and visitors.