Publications by authors named "Romeo Hizon"
Article Synopsis
- Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) is a significant health issue for children, particularly in hospitals, leading to various health complications.
- * The study focuses on the trends of CDI in both healthcare environments and the community in Canada, detailing cases in inpatient and outpatient settings.
- * It also addresses the prevalence of recurrent CDI infections among affected children, highlighting the ongoing challenge in managing this condition.*
Trends in infection rates in Canadian hospitals during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol
July 2023
Article Synopsis
- - The COVID-19 pandemic has heavily impacted healthcare systems and resource availability.
- - A study was conducted comparing Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) rates before and during the pandemic in 71 Canadian hospitals.
- - Results from the study showed a significant increase in CDI rates during the pandemic period.
Article Synopsis
- - The study examined over 18,000 cases of Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) in Canadian hospitals from 2015 to 2019, finding that healthcare-associated (HA) infections accounted for 74.4% while community-associated (CA) infections made up 25.6%.
- - During the study period, HA CDI rates dropped by 23.8% and CA rates by 18.8%, with HA CDI linked to higher 30-day mortality rates compared to CA CDI.
- - The most prevalent ribotypes were RT027, RT106, RT014, and RT020, with RT027 showing a stronger association with CDI-related deaths; the findings emphasize the need for ongoing infection prevention
Article Synopsis
- Clostridium difficile is a major cause of antibiotic-associated diarrhea in healthcare settings, with metronidazole being the standard treatment, but recurrence rates can be high (15-35%).
- A study characterized a metronidazole-resistant strain of C. difficile using whole-genome sequencing, revealing genetic changes related to core metabolic pathways that may underpin this resistance.
- This research is significant as it provides the first stable characterization of metronidazole resistance in C. difficile, paving the way for further investigation into how this resistance develops and persists.
Background: Staphylococcus aureus may produce superantigens that can non-specifically activate CD4(+) cells to potentially target the myelin basic protein.
Objective: This study examined the association between individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS) and colonization with S. aureus harbouring superantigens.
Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction was used to determine the amount of overexpression of the ampC gene in 52 cefoxitin-resistant Escherichia coli clinical isolates that had previously characterized mutations in their ampC promoter/attenuator regions. The results showed that mutations that create a consensus -35 box (TTGACA) are the most important factor in strengthening the ampC promoter, followed by base pair insertions that increase the distance between the -35 and -10 boxes to 17 or 18 bp. Mutations in the -10 box are of lesser importance and those in the attenuator region appear to have little effect on ampC expression.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVanG-type vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecalis strains isolated in Canada.
Antimicrob Agents Chemother
June 2006
Enterococcus faecalis G1-0247 (vancomycin MIC, 16 microg/ml) was found to harbor a vanG operon 99% identical to the vanG operon in E. faecalis BM4518. E.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To characterize the mechanism of cefoxitin resistance in clinical isolate Escherichia coli N99-0001.
Methods: Plasmid analysis, PCR for beta-lactamases, and sequencing of the ampC genes was carried out. An RT-PCR method was developed to determine relative ampC expression.