Streptococcus intermedius causing primary bacterial ventriculitis in a patient with severe periodontitis - a case report.

Background: Streptococcus intermedius is a member of the S. anginosus group and is part of the normal oral microbiota. It can cause pyogenic infections in various organs, primarily in the head and neck area, including brain abscesses and meningitis.

Cytohistological findings in HPV-negative cases from HPV primary screening programme: quality assurance study.

To evaluate the risk of false HPV-negative results and possible related morphological abnormalities in HPV primary cervical cancer screening. Out of 53,661 HPV-negative cases, 5469 (10.2%) randomly selected cytology slides were evaluated as a part of the quality assurance protocol.

Fungemia and Other Fungal Infections Associated with Use of Saccharomyces boulardii Probiotic Supplements.

Because of widespread use of probiotics, their safety must be guaranteed. We assessed use of probiotic yeast from medical records for patients who had fungemia or other clinical culture findings. We evaluated all sp.

Healthcare-associated blood stream infections in hematological patients in Finland during the years 2006-2016.

Objectives: The aim was to identify the clinical characteristics, outcome, and antimicrobial susceptibility of healthcare-associated bloodstream infections (BSIs) in hematological patients.

Methods: This retrospectively collected laboratory-based surveillance data include 3404 healthcare-associated BSIs in 2296 patients with a hematological malignancy in hospitals participating in the Finnish Hospital Infection Program from January 1, 2006, to December 31, 2016.

Results: The most common underlying diseases were acute myelogenous leukemia (35%) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (22%).

Primary HPV screening for cervical cancer: Results after two screening rounds in a regional screening program in Finland.

Introduction: Since 2012, cervical cancer screening has been conducted with a primary high-risk human papillomavirus (hrHPV) test and conventional cytology triage in the city of Tampere, Finland. The women who were screened with the hrHPV test in 2012 were invited to participate in the second screening round in 2017. The aim of the present report was to compare the number of colposcopy referrals and the number of histological high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL)+ (cervical intraepithelial neoplasia [CIN2+]) lesions between the first and second screening rounds of women of a specific age group who were screened twice with the hrHPV test.

Molecular epidemiology of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales in Finland, 2012-2018.

Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales (CPE) pose an increasing threat to patient safety and healthcare systems globally. We present molecular epidemiology of CPE in Finland during 2012-2018 with detailed characteristics of CPE strains causing clusters during the same time period. All Finnish clinical microbiology laboratories send Enterobacterales isolates with reduced susceptibility to carbapenems or isolates producing carbapenemase to the reference laboratory for further characterization by whole genome sequencing (WGS).

Differential mobility spectrometry classification of bacteria.

Rapid identification of bacteria would facilitate timely initiation of therapy and improve cost-effectiveness of treatment. Traditional methods (culture, PCR) require reagents, consumables and hours to days to complete the identification. In this study, we examined whether differential mobility spectrometry could classify most common bacterial species, genera and between Gram status within minutes.

Evaluation of a semi-automated Seegene PCR workflow with MTB, MDR, and NTM detection for rapid screening of tuberculosis in a low-prevalence setting.

In areas of low tuberculosis (TB) prevalence, laboratory diagnosis of TB may essentially cover non-tuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) in addition to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB). In this study, a semi-automated PCR workflow distinguishing MTB and NTM (Anyplex™ MTB/NTMe, Seegene) and subsequently detecting MTB isoniazid/rifampicin resistance (Allplex™ MTB/MDRe, Seegene) was evaluated for replacing smear microscopy of acid-fast bacilli as the rapid screening method for TB. With 279 clinical samples, 47 cultures positive for MTB and 76 for NTM, the Anyplex™ MTB/NTMe assay and smear microscopy showed equal sensitivities (49.

Tracing local and regional clusters of carbapenemase-producing ST512 with whole genome sequencing, Finland, 2013 to 2018.

BackgroundTwo epidemiologically-unrelated clusters of carbapenemase (KPC)-producing were detected among several healthcare facilities (HCF) in Finland by routine surveillance using whole genome sequencing (WGS).AimThe objective was to investigate transmission chains to stop further spread of the responsible strain.MethodsIn this observational retrospective study, cases were defined as patients with KPC-3 sequence type (ST)512 strain detected in Finland from August 2013 to May 2018.

HIGH-RISK HPV testing as the primary screening method in an organized regional screening program for cervical cancer: the value of HPV16 and HPV18 genotyping?

Since 2012, testing high-risk (HR)HPV has been used as the primary screening test for women ≥35 years attending the organized cervical cancer screening program in the city of Tampere. We evaluated the contribution of HPV16/18 genotyping. Data from 2012 and 2013, and the follow-up samples in 2013 and 2014, respectively, were analyzed.

Evaluation of two tuberculosis PCR assays for routine use in a clinical setting of low population and low tuberculosis prevalence.

Today, there are numerous different molecular diagnostic assays for the detection of tuberculosis (TB), allowing the optimization of rapid detection of TB according to the clinical need. In this study, two high-throughput TB PCR assays with combined antimicrobial resistance detection, Anyplex™ II MTB/MDR (Seegene) and RealTime MTB + RealTime MTB RIF/INH Resistance (Abbott Molecular), were evaluated for routine use in a clinical setting of low population and low TB prevalence in Finland. The RealTime MTB assay was 100% concordant (22/22 positive, n = 169) with the reference methods (culture and Xpert MTB/RIF PCR assay, Cepheid).

Implementation of HPV-based cervical cancer screening in an organised regional screening programme: 3 years of experience.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of human papillomavirus (HPV)-based screening in the framework of an organised cervical cancer screening programme.

Methods: A total of 46 708 women aged 35-60 years invited to the regional cervical cancer screening programme from 1 January 2012, to 31 December 2014, were enrolled. Overall, 17 770 women were screened by the Abbot RealTime hrHPV test with cytology triage and 15 605 were screened by conventional (Papanicolaou, Pap) cytology.

In vitro detection of common rhinosinusitis bacteria by the eNose utilising differential mobility spectrometry.

Acute rhinosinusitis (ARS) is a sudden, symptomatic inflammation of the nasal and paranasal mucosa. It is usually caused by respiratory virus infection, but bacteria complicate for a small number of ARS patients. The differential diagnostics between viral and bacterial pathogens is difficult and currently no rapid methodology exists, so antibiotics are overprescribed.

Spa type distribution in MRSA and MSSA bacteremias and association of spa clonal complexes with the clinical characteristics of bacteremia.

The genetic distribution of invasive methicillin-susceptible (MSSA) and resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains has to be addressed in order to target infection control strategies. A large MRSA epidemic caused by a certain MRSA strain (spa type 067) broke out in 2001 in our health district.

Electronic Nose in the Detection of Wound Infection Bacteria from Bacterial Cultures: A Proof-of-Principle Study.

Background: Soft tissue infections, including postoperative wound infections, result in a significant burden for modern society. Rapid diagnosis of wound infections is based on bacterial stains, cultures, and polymerase chain reaction assays, and the results are available earliest after several hours, but more often not until days after. Therefore, antibiotic treatment is often administered empirically without a specific diagnosis.

A Serratia marcescens outbreak in a neonatal intensive care unit was successfully managed by rapid hospital hygiene interventions and screening.

Aim: Serratia marcescens is a rare, but important, pathogen in hospital-acquired infections, especially in neonatal units. Outbreaks may cause significant mortality among neonates. This study describes how an outbreak of S.

Comparison of outcome and clinical characteristics of bacteremia caused by methicillin-resistant, penicillin-resistant and penicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus strains.

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the association of methicillin resistance and penicillinase production with clinical characteristics and outcome of Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia.

Methods: For 126 patients with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteremia, 378 age- and gender-matched controls with methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) bacteremia were selected. Of controls, 126 had bacteremia caused by penicillin-susceptible strains (PSSA) and 252 by penicillinase-producing strains (PRSA).

Human papillomavirus test with cytology triage in organized screening for cervical cancer.

Introduction: In randomized studies, testing for high-risk (HR) human papillomavirus (hrHPV) has been more sensitive than conventional cytology in detecting cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN). The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of HPV testing in the setting of an organized routine screening program.

Material And Methods: Since 2012, 35- to 60-year-old women living in the city of Tampere have been screened with the Abbott RealTime hrHPV test.

Use of an automated PCR assay, the GenomEra S. pneumoniae, for rapid detection of Streptococcus pneumoniae in blood cultures.

Background: Streptococcus pneumoniae is recognized as a major cause of pneumonia, meningitis, and bacteremia. Since the mortality rate for pneumococcal bacteremia remains high, the reliable detection of the bacterium in blood samples is important. In this study, the performance of a new automated PCR assay, the GenomEra(™) S.

Combined interventions are effective in MRSA control.

Background: A large healthcare-associated epidemic mainly caused by one methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strain broke out in Pirkanmaa County, Finland, in 2001. This study describes the impact of infection control and screening practices on the epidemic.

Methods: The number of hospital-acquired (HA)-MRSA findings obtained from clinical and screening samples during the epidemic was calculated.

Etiology, clinical course and outcome of healthcare-associated bloodstream infections in patients with hematological malignancies: a retrospective study of 350 patients in a Finnish tertiary care hospital.

This retrospectively collected laboratory-based surveillance data includes 575 healthcare-associated bloodstream infections (BSIs) in 350 patients with hematological malignancy in Tampere University Hospital, Finland, during 1999-2001 and 2005-2010. The most common underlying diseases were acute myelogenous leukemia (n=283, 49%), followed by myeloma (n=87, 15%) and acute lymphocytic leukemia (n=76, 13%). The overall rate was 9.

An outbreak of human metapneumovirus in a rehabilitation center for alcoholics in Tampere, Finland.

Reports of respiratory tract infections in a rehabilitation center for alcoholics triggered the epidemiological investigations in Tampere, Finland. Twenty-nine out of 40 residents (attack rate 73%) and four members of staff fulfilled the case criteria: cough; worsening of dyspnea; or rhinitis with or without fever. Ten cases were hospitalized, one needed treatment in the intensive care unit.

Rapid and accurate detection of urinary pathogens by mobile IMS-based electronic nose: a proof-of-principle study.

Unlabelled: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is a common disease with significant morbidity and economic burden, accounting for a significant part of the workload in clinical microbiology laboratories. Current clinical chemisty point-of-care diagnostics rely on imperfect dipstick analysis which only provides indirect and insensitive evidence of urinary bacterial pathogens. An electronic nose (eNose) is a handheld device mimicking mammalian olfaction that potentially offers affordable and rapid analysis of samples without preparation at athmospheric pressure.