Prognosis of prosthetic valve infective endocarditis due to Streptococcus spp., a retrospective multi-site study to assess the impact of antibiotic treatment duration.

Purpose: The duration of antibiotic treatment for prosthetic valve endocarditis caused by Streptococcus spp. is largely based on clinical observations and expert opinion rather than empirical studies. Here we assess the impact of a shorter antibiotic duration.

Evaluating the heart valve tissue diffusion of amoxicillin in infective endocarditis: a pilot prospective observational non-comparative study.

Objectives: Treating patients with infective endocarditis (IE) due to streptococci and enterococci currently involves high-dosage antibiotics. Recent literature suggests a 30%-70% diffusion rate could be extrapolated to human heart valve tissue. The objective of this study was to evaluate the diffusion coefficient of amoxicillin in heart valve tissue of patients operated for IE.

Comparison of the New VITEK MS PRIME System with the Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization Biotyper Microflex LT for the Identification of Microorganisms.

Background: Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) is the cornerstone of bacterial identification. The performance of a new MALDI time-of-flight mass spectrometry VITEK MS PRIME (VMS-P) system was compared with that of the MALDI Biotyper Microflex LT (MBT) system, which is routinely used in our laboratory.

Methods: Sixteen bacterial and yeast reference strains cultured in 20 different media were analyzed over 10 consecutive rounds using both systems.

Frequency and factors associated with infusion-related local complications of vancomycin on peripheral venous catheters.

Background: Vancomycin is a reference antibiotic against methicillin-resistant staphylococci. Its administration is associated with infusion-related local complications (IRLC). To reduce this risk, it has been proposed to increase vancomycin dilution in the IV bag and to perform continuous infusion using the volumetric pump.

Clinical and biological diagnosis and follow-up of patients treated for endovascular infections due to Coxiellaburnetii.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the recommended treatment for endovascular infections due to Coxiella burnetii. This single-center retrospective study was conducted in 13 patients with endovascular infection due to C. burnetii between January 2001 and December 2020 for a definite or possible endovascular infection due to C.

Use of specific agar plates for early detection of anaerobic bacteria in surgical site infections after spinal surgery: a prospective single centre study.

To determine if additional agar plates could allow earlier detection of anaerobes in spinal surgical site infections (SSIs), we performed a prospective study (November 2017-January 2019) of patients with early spinal SSIs. In addition to routine 14-day cultures, surgical samples were inoculated onto three additional plates (CDC anaerobe agar with 5% sheep blood [CDC], CDC anaerobe laked sheep blood agar with kanamycin/vancomycin [BBL], and Bacteroides bile esculin [BBE] agar with amikacin (BD, USA)) incubated under anaerobic conditions (72 h, 37°C). The primary endpoint was detection of anaerobes by these methods, as compared to routine culture.

Faecal carriage of multidrug-resistant bacteria and associated risk factors: results from a point prevalence study.

Objectives: Since 2003, incidences of carbapenemase-producing Gram-negative bacilli (CP-GNB) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VRE) have steadily increased in France. We therefore conducted a point prevalence study to estimate carriage rates of CP-GNB, VRE and ESBL-producing Enterobacterales (ESBL-PE) and associated risk factors.

Methods: Between September 2019 and January 2020, all inpatients hospitalized on a given day in 11 teaching hospitals in the Paris urban area were eligible.

Assessment of version 2.5 of QMAC-dRAST for rapid antimicrobial susceptibility testing with reduced sample-to-answer turnaround time and an integrated expert system.

Objective: To assess the performance of the new rapid antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) QMAC-dRAST V2.5 system.

Methods: ASTs were performed using QMAC-dRAST-V2.

Analysis of Microbiota and Mycobiota in Fungal Ball Rhinosinusitis: Specific Interaction between and ?

Fungal ball (FB) rhinosinusitis (RS) is the main type of non-invasive fungal RS. Despite positive direct examination (DE) of biopsies, culture remains negative in more than 60% of cases. The aim of the study was to evaluate the performance/efficacy of targeted metagenomics (TM) to analyze microbiota and mycobiota in FB and find microbial associations.

Mitral valve granulomatosis: A paradoxical reaction complicating etanercept treatment in rheumatoid arthritis. A case report.

Background: "Sarcoidosis-like" paradoxical reactions to Antitumor necrosis factor α (anti-TNFα) treatment have been reported. The clinical presentations are varied, most of the time, with a relatively typical picture of mediastinopulmonary involvement. More rarely, isolated granulomatous locations from various organs are described, leading to difficulties in diagnosis.

Performance of 30 commercial SARS-CoV-2 serology assays in testing symptomatic COVID-19 patients.

We report evaluation of 30 assays' (17 rapid tests (RDTs) and 13 automated/manual ELISA/CLIA assay (IAs)) clinical performances with 2594 sera collected from symptomatic patients with positive SARS-CoV-2 rRT-PCR on a respiratory sample, and 1996 pre-epidemic serum samples expected to be negative. Only 4 RDT and 3 IAs fitted both specificity (> 98%) and sensitivity (> 90%) criteria according to French recommendations. Serology may offer valuable information during COVID-19 pandemic, but inconsistent performances observed among the 30 commercial assays evaluated, which underlines the importance of independent evaluation before clinical implementation.

Analytical performances of five SARS-CoV-2 whole-blood finger-stick IgG-IgM combined antibody rapid tests.

Facing the ongoing pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2, there is an urgent need for serological assays identifying individuals previously infected by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), including rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs). We herein compared five new CE-IVD-labeled commercially available SARS-CoV-2 whole-blood finger-stick IgG/IgM combined RDTs, in parallel according to the manufacturers' instructions, with two serum panels obtained from 48 patients with confirmed COVID-19 (panel I) and from a group of 52 patients randomly selected, for whom serum samples collected before the COVID-19 epidemic (from October 1 to November 30, 2019) were negative for SARS-CoV-2 IgG (panel II). We found a sensitivity of 95.

A Case of Phage Therapy against Pandrug-Resistant in a 12-Year-Old Lung-Transplanted Cystic Fibrosis Patient.

Bacteriophages are a promising therapeutic strategy among cystic fibrosis and lung-transplanted patients, considering the high frequency of colonization/infection caused by pandrug-resistant bacteria. However, little clinical data are available regarding the use of phages for infections with . A 12-year-old lung-transplanted cystic fibrosis patient received two rounds of phage therapy because of persistent lung infection with pandrug-resistant .

Role of astroglial Connexin 43 in pneumolysin cytotoxicity and during pneumococcal meningitis.

Streptococcus pneumoniae or pneumococcus (PN) is a major causative agent of bacterial meningitis with high mortality in young infants and elderly people worldwide. The mechanism underlying PN crossing of the blood brain barrier (BBB) and specifically, the role of non-endothelial cells of the neurovascular unit that control the BBB function, remains poorly understood. Here, we show that the astroglial connexin 43 (aCx43), a major gap junctional component expressed in astrocytes, plays a predominant role during PN meningitis.

Renal abscess caused by Panton-Valentine leukocidin-producing : report of an unusual case and review of the literature.

Background: Renal abscesses are rare and mainly caused by an ascending infection due to Gram-negative microorganisms. We report the first case of a renal abscess caused by Panton-Valentine leukocidin-producing in an immunocompetent patient, and we present a comprehensive review of the literature.

Case Presentation: A 20-year-old immunocompetent woman had a 2-month history of left-sided back pain, fever and urinary symptoms.

Optimization of a Top-Down Proteomics Platform for Closely Related Pathogenic Bacterial Discrimination.

The current technique used for microbial identification in hospitals is matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). However, it suffers from important limitations, in particular, for closely related species or when the database used for the identification lacks the appropriate reference. In this work, we set up a liquid chromatography (LC)-MS/MS top-down proteomics platform, which aims at discriminating closely related pathogenic bacteria through the identification of specific proteoforms.

Unexpected diagnosis of COVID-19-associated disorders by SARS-CoV-2-specific serology.

Facing the ongoing pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2, there is an urgent need for serological assays identifying individuals with on-going infection as well as past coronavirus infectious disease 2019 (COVID-19). We herein evaluated the analytical performances of the CE IVD-labeled Abbott SARS-CoV-2 IgG assay (Des Plaines, IL, USA) carried out with the automated Abbott Architect™ i2000 platform at Hôpital Européen Georges Pompidou, Paris, France, using serum sample panels obtained from health-workers with COVID-19 history confirmed by positive nucleic acid amplification-based diagnosis and from patients randomly selected for whom serum samples were collected before the COVID-19 epidemic. The Abbott SARS-CoV-2 IgG assay showed sensitivity of 94 % and specificity of 100 %, demonstrating high analytical performances allowing convenient management of suspected on-going and past-infections.

Comparative evaluation of the QMAC-dRAST V2.0 system for rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing of Gram-negative blood culture isolates.

To comparatively evaluate the performance of the rapid antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) system QMAC-dRAST V2.0 and of standard disk diffusion in agar, AST was performed directly from 100 positive blood culture bottles with Gram-negative bacilli. AST results provided by QMAC-dRAST showed 92.

Local outbreak of extended-spectrum β-lactamase SHV2a-producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa reveals the emergence of a new specific sub-lineage of the international ST235 high-risk clone.

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major bacterial pathogen responsible for hospital-acquired infections. Although its epidemiology is considered as non-clonal, certain international high-risk multidrug-resistant clones have been recognized.

Aim: From the first report of an intra-hospital outbreak due to an SHV2a-producing P.

Synergistic activity between aztreonam and amoxicillin-clavulanate against Enterobacteriaceae-producing class B and/or class D carbapenemases with or without extended-spectrum -lactamases.

Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae have become a major public health concern over the last decade and treatment options are limited. We evaluated the synergistic activity of the combination of aztreonam (ATM) and clavulanate for 41 -lactam-resistant clinical isolates harbouring class B or/and class D carbapenemases combined or not with extended-spectrum -lactamases (ESBLs). The MICs of ATM, with and without amoxicillin-clavulanate (AMC), were determined.