Publications by authors named "Stefanie van Kleef-van Koeveringe"
Objectives: Linezolid-resistant opportunistic human pathogens Enterococcus faecalis and Enterococcus faecium are emerging health threats as limited therapeutic options remain. The aim of this study was to investigate the epidemiology, resistance mechanisms, and genetic diversity of linezolid-resistant enterococci (LRE) isolated between 2013 and 2021 and received at the Belgian National Reference Centre (NRC) for Enterococci.
Methods: Linezolid susceptibility testing was performed upon request on 2458 submitted enterococci strains.
Background: Colistin serves as the last line of defense against multidrug resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections in both human and veterinary medicine. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence and spread of colistin-resistant Enterobacterales (ColR-E) using a One Health approach in Belgium and in the Netherlands.
Methods: In a transnational research project, a total of 998 hospitalized patients, 1430 long-term care facility (LTCF) residents, 947 children attending day care centres, 1597 pigs and 1691 broilers were sampled for the presence of ColR-E in 2017 and 2018, followed by a second round twelve months later for hospitalized patients and animals.
Clinical and molecular epidemiological features of critically ill patients with invasive group A Streptococcus infections: a Belgian multicenter case-series.
Ann Intensive Care
January 2024
Background: Recent alerts have highlighted an increase in group A streptococcal (GAS) infections since 2022 in Europe and the United States. Streptococcus pyogenes can cause limited skin or mucosal disease, but can also present as severe invasive disease necessitating critical care. We performed a multicenter retrospective study of patients with GAS infections recently admitted to Belgian intensive care units (ICUs) since January 2022.
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- * A prevalence survey was conducted using perianal swabs from October 2017 to February 2019 to detect MDRO, with clonal relatedness analyzed through wgMLST profiling.
- * Findings indicate an increasing prevalence of MDRO in Belgian healthcare settings and highlight the importance of establishing a comprehensive infection prevention strategy utilizing whole genome sequencing (WGS) for better control.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the spread of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) in children attending 18 day care centres (DCCs) in Belgium, highlighting the public health threat posed by these bacteria.
- A prevalence survey found that 15.8% of faecal swabs tested positive for extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing bacteria (ESBL-E), with significant variation in prevalence among the DCCs, indicating potential transmission.
- The study also found a low presence of carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPE) and no vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE), emphasizing the need for improved hygiene measures in DCCs to prevent the spread of MDROs.
Many European countries have recently reported upsurges in invasive group A (iGAS) infections, mainly caused by 1 , specifically the toxigenic M1 lineage. We present the epidemiology of 1 causing iGAS in Belgium during 2018-August 2023, and describe an emergence of the toxigenic M1 lineage in Belgium in mid-2022 that was observed as an increase in bloodstream infections caused by 1 that continued into 2023.
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- A new tool called the Infection Risk Scan (IRIS) has been developed to evaluate infection control and antimicrobial use across various hospitals.
- The implementation of IRIS involved standardized measurements, such as patient comorbidities and hand hygiene performance, and was executed by trained local infection control practitioners in nine hospitals along the Dutch/Belgian border.
- Results showed significant differences in infection control metrics between hospitals in Belgium and the Netherlands, highlighting areas for potential improvement in quality of care.