Skin and soft tissue infections due to Panton-Valentine leukocidin producing Staphylococcus aureus.

Objective: The authors had for aim to describe the epidemiological and clinical characteristics, and the treatment of patients presenting with skin and soft tissue infections due to Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL) producing Staphylococcus aureus in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais (NPDC) region, North of France.

Methods: We included patients presenting with PVL producing S. aureus infection from seven hospitals in the NPDC region, between February 2004 and April 2008.

In vitro antibacterial activity of ceftobiprole against clinical isolates from French teaching hospitals: proposition of zone diameter breakpoints.

The aims of this study were to determine the in vitro activity profile of ceftobiprole, a pyrrolidinone cephalosporin, against a large number of bacterial pathogens and to propose zone diameter breakpoints for clinical categorisation according to the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) breakpoints. MICs of ceftobiprole were determined by broth microdilution against 1548 clinical isolates collected in eight French hospitals. Disk diffusion testing was performed using 30 μg disks according to the method of the Comité de l'Antibiogramme de la Société Française de Microbiologie (CA-SFM).

In vitro antibacterial activity of doripenem against clinical isolates from French teaching hospitals: proposition of zone diameter breakpoints.

The aims of the study were to determine the in vitro activity of doripenem, a new carbapenem, against a large number of bacterial pathogens and to propose zone diameter breakpoints for clinical categorization in France according to the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) breakpoints. The MICs of doripenem were determined by the broth microdilution method against 1,547 clinical isolates from eight French hospitals. The disk diffusion test was performed (10-μg discs) according to the Comité de l'Antibiogramme de la Société Française de Microbiologie (CASFM) method.

Epidemiology and antimicrobial resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae in France in 2007: data from the pneumococcus surveillance network.

Antimicrobial resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae in France is closely monitored by the pneumococcus surveillance network, founded in 1995, which collects data from regional observatories (Observatoire Régionaux du Pneumocoque [ORP]). In 2007, 23 ORPs analyzed the antibiotic susceptibility of 5,302 isolates of S. pneumoniae recovered in France from cerebrospinal fluid, blood, middle ear fluid, and pleural fluid, as well as from adult respiratory samples.

Comparative in vitro activity of Meropenem, Imipenem and Piperacillin/tazobactam against 1071 clinical isolates using 2 different methods: a French multicentre study.

Background: Meropenem is a carbapenem that has an excellent activity against many gram-positive and gram-negative aerobic, facultative, and anaerobic bacteria. The major objective of the present study was to assess the in vitro activity of meropenem compared to imipenem and piperacillin/tazobactam, against 1071 non-repetitive isolates collected from patients with bacteremia (55%), pneumonia (29%), peritonitis (12%) and wound infections (3%), in 15 French hospitals in 2006. The secondary aim of the study was to compare the results of routinely testings and those obtained by a referent laboratory.

Daily serum piperacillin monitoring is advisable in critically ill patients.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the benefit of monitoring serum piperacillin concentrations in critically ill patients. This was an 11-month, prospective, observational study in a 30-bed Intensive Care Unit in a teaching hospital, involving 24 critically ill patients with evidence of bacterial sepsis. All patients received a 66 mg/kg intravenous bolus of piperacillin in combination with tazobactam (ratio 1:0.

Serotype distribution and antibiotic resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae strains isolated from adults in France: evolution between 2001 and 2003.

Antibiotic-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae (Sp) are described around the world. The present national surveillance study report analyzes more than 6000 Sp strains, isolated from adults across France in 2001 and 2003, from blood cultures (3086 in 2001 and 3164 in 2003), cerebrospinal fluid (respectively, 238 and 240), or middle ear fluid (respectively, 110 and 100). The proportion of isolates with reduced susceptibility to penicillin fell significantly between 2001 and 2003 from 46.

Preliminary clinical study using a multiplex real-time PCR test for the detection of bacterial and fungal DNA directly in blood.

Early diagnosis of sepsis, rapid identification of the causative pathogen(s) and prompt initiation of appropriate antibiotic treatment have a combined impact on mortality due to sepsis. In this observational study, a new DNA-based system (LightCycler SeptiFast (LC-SF) test; Roche Diagnostics) allowing detection of 16 pathogens at the species level and four groups of pathogens at the genus level has been evaluated and compared with conventional blood cultures (BCs). One hundred BC and LC-SF results were obtained for 72 patients admitted to the intensive-care unit over a 6-month period for suspected sepsis.

Factors predicting bacterial involvement in severe acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Background: Strategies aiming at reducing antibiotic use are required in the intensive care unit (ICU). Although antibiotic treatment is recommended in patients with severe exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a bacterial etiology is found in only a half of these patients.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine factors predicting bacterial isolation in severe acute exacerbations of COPD.

Risk factors for relapse of ventilator-associated pneumonia related to nonfermenting Gram negative bacilli: a case-control study.

Background: The aim of this study was to determine risk factors for relapse of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) related to nonfermenting Gram negative bacilli (NF-GNB).

Methods: This is a retrospective case-control study based on prospectively collected data. Two hundred and seventy six patients with monobacterial VAP related to NF-GNB were eligible.

Factors determining length of the postoperative hospital stay after major head and neck cancer surgery.

Hospital stays constitute the main component of costs of cancer treatment. We conducted a prospective study to identify the determinants of the length of stay (LOS) after head and neck cancer surgery (HNCS). Patients who underwent major HNCS with opening of mucosa and with curative intent were enrolled.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa may accumulate drug resistance mechanisms without losing its ability to cause bloodstream infections.

In this study, we systematically investigated the resistance mechanisms to beta-lactams, aminoglycosides, and fluoroquinolones of 120 bacteremic strains of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis genotyping showed that 97 of these strains were represented by a single isolate, 10 by 2 and 1 by 3 clonally related isolates, respectively. Seventy-five percent (90 out of 120) of the bacteremic P.

Susceptibility of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to antimicrobials: a 2004 French multicentre hospital study.

Objectives: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major causative agent of hospital infections. The purpose of this study was to determine the antibiotic susceptibility of P. aeruginosa in a French multicentre study and to investigate the mechanisms of beta-lactam resistance.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa: resistance and therapeutic options at the turn of the new millennium.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major cause of nosocomial infections. This organism shows a remarkable capacity to resist antibiotics, either intrinsically (because of constitutive expression of beta-lactamases and efflux pumps, combined with low permeability of the outer-membrane) or following acquisition of resistance genes (e.g.

Impact of antifungal treatment on Candida-Pseudomonas interaction: a preliminary retrospective case-control study.

Objective: A pathogenic interaction between Candida albicans and Pseudomonas aeruginosa has recently been demonstrated. In addition, experimental and clinical studies identified Candida spp. tracheobronchial colonization as a risk factor for P.

Multiple-drug-resistant bacteria in patients with severe acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Prevalence, risk factors, and outcome.

Objective: To determine prevalence, risk factors, and effect on outcome of multiple-drug-resistant (MDR) bacteria in patients with severe acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Design: Prospective, observational, cohort study.

Setting: Thirty-bed medical intensive care unit (ICU) in a university hospital.

Antimicrobial resistance data on 16,756 Streptococcus pneumoniae isolates in 1999: A Pan-Regional Multicenter Surveillance Study in France.

The rising prevalence of antibiotic-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae is a phenomenon observed to different degrees around the world. The present national surveillance study report analyzes a total of 16,756 strains of S. pneumoniae collected across France in 1999.

Effect of gingival and dental plaque antiseptic decontamination on nosocomial infections acquired in the intensive care unit: a double-blind placebo-controlled multicenter study.

Objective: To document the effect of gingival and dental plaque antiseptic decontamination on the rate of nosocomial bacteremias and respiratory infections acquired in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Design: Prospective, multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled efficacy study.

Setting: Six ICUs: three in university hospitals and three in general hospitals.

First-generation fluoroquinolone use and subsequent emergence of multiple drug-resistant bacteria in the intensive care unit.

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the relationship between fluoroquinolone (FQ) use and subsequent emergence of multiple drug-resistant bacteria (MRB) in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Design: The authors conducted a prospective observational cohort study and a case control study.

Setting: The study was conducted in a 30-bed ICU.

Prognostic significance of wound infections following major head and neck cancer surgery: an open non-comparative prospective study.

Objective: We evaluated the incidence, risk factors and consequences of wound infection (WI) following major head and neck cancer surgery in an open non-comparative study.

Patients And Methods: The study group, comprising 95 patients who underwent clean-contaminated procedures with opening of the upper aerodigestive tract for biopsy-proven squamous cell cancer, were studied over a 1-year period. Antibiotic prophylaxis was amoxicillin and clavulanic acid.

Previous chemotherapy as a predictor of wound infections in nonmajor head and neck surgery: Results of a prospective study.

Background: The goal of this prospective study was to determine the incidence of wound infections (WI) after clean uncontaminated head and neck cancer procedures and after emergency tracheotomies.

Methods: Two hundred twelve clean procedures without tracheotomy or opening of mucosa (neck dissections, large skin resections, thyroidectomies, parotid gland resections, and explorative cervicotomies) were studied at Oscar Lambret Cancer Center over a 24-month period.

Results: WI rate was 6.

[Analysis of the factors influencing the internal reporting of nosocomial infections. A review of 108 notifications].

Introduction: Since July 26, 2001, the external reporting to the regional office of health and social affairs (Direction départementale des affaires sanitaires et sociales--Ddass) and the coordination centre (Comité de lutte contre les infections nosocomiales--Cclin) for the fight against nosocomial infections (NI) is mandatory. However, the modalities of internal reporting to the Clin are unknown.

Method: We performed a retrospective analysis of 108 cases of NI reported over 23 months in 4 medical-surgical departments (MSD) with 14 to 35 NI reported/MSD.