Publications by authors named "Stephen Thacker"

Article Synopsis
  • * Researchers examined 172 cases and found that 58% had a positive urine culture, with most infections caused by Escherichia coli, yet only 17% of the prescribed antibiotic regimens were appropriate.
  • * The results highlighted widespread inappropriate use of broad-spectrum antibiotics, particularly third cephalosporins, and indicated a need for better treatment protocols to avoid unnecessary prescriptions and prolonged treatments.
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Introduction: Daptomycin (DAP) is a cyclic lipopeptide that exhibits potent in vitro activity against many drug-resistant gram-positive organisms, including methicillin-resistant (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE). Despite substantial reports evaluating the clinical outcomes of DAP within the adult population, real-world data are lacking in children. The primary goal of this evaluation was to describe the clinical characteristics and outcomes of DAP use in pediatric patients across a wide range of infections.

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is a leading cause of invasive bacterial infections in the pediatric population. In general, data surrounding the use of newly approved antimicrobials within children are lacking. Dalbavancin is a long-acting lipoglycopeptide that shows promise for off-label use in adults given its unique pharmacokinetics and in vitro potency against common Gram-positive isolates; however, evidence to supports its use in children is limited.

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Invasive  disease (IPD) remains a serious cause of morbidity and loss of life in children and adults worldwide. While pneumococcal vaccines have reduced the frequency of invasive pneumococcal disease, the emergence of invasive non-vaccine serotypes has mandated the development of novel pneumococcal vaccines to further protect against these emerging serotypes. We present a case of a non-vaccine serotype invasive pneumococcal disease-causing septic shock, meningitis, and stroke in a previously healthy and appropriately vaccinated 23-month-old male.

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Background Methicillin-resistant (MRSA) can colonize up to 14.5% of healthcare workers (HCWs). The colonization rate of HCWs or the hospital setting that contributes most to MRSA colonization is less clear.

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Description A 15-year-old female presented to the emergency department with swelling and pain in her left labial region as well as urinary retention after intercourse. This was the patient's first time having sexual intercourse and the patient stated that her boyfriend "kneed" her in the labia. A CT scan of the pelvis revealed a large vulvar/external hematoma measuring 6 × 10 × 7 cm which extended into the vaginal vault.

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This supplement is the second of a series of periodic reports from a CDC initiative to monitor and report on the use of a set of selected clinical preventive services in the U.S. population in the context of recent national initiatives to improve access to and use of such services.

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Cervicofacial actinomycosis is an unusual cause of head and neck masses in children. This low prevalence of disease in children inevitably leads to delay in clinical recognition and often requires invasive intervention for diagnosis and curative therapy. We present an illustrative case and review cases of cervicofacial actinomycosis in the pediatric literature with particular attention to clinical presentation, course, and outcome.

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Objectives: To identify novel approaches to improve innate immunity in the lung following trauma complicated by hemorrhagic shock (T/HS) for prevention of nosocomial pneumonia.

Methods: We developed a rat model of T/HS followed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) pneumonia to assess the effect of alveolar epithelial cell (AEC) apoptosis, and its prevention by IL-6, on lung surfactant protein (SP)-D protein levels, lung bacterial burden, and survival from PA pneumonia, as well as to determine whether AEC apoptosis is a consequence of the unfolded protein response (UPR). Lung UPR transcriptome analysis was performed on rats subjected to sham, T/HS, and T/HS plus IL-6 protocols.

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Trauma with hemorrhagic shock (T/HS), has been shown to result in liver injury marked by hepatocyte apoptosis and heart failure marked by cardiomyocyte apoptosis, both of which we have shown to be prevented by IL-6 administration at resuscitation, and Stat3 largely mediated this. As specific mediators have not been delineated, we investigated the unfolded protein response (UPR), which, with marked activation, can lead to apoptosis. Prior studies of hepatic and cardiac injury examined limited repertoires of UPR elements, making it difficult to assess the role of the UPR in T/HS.

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In its landmark 1988 report, a committee of the Institute of Medicine highlighted assessment as one of the three core functions of public health along with policy development and assurance. The committee recommended that every public health agency regularly and systematically collect, assemble, analyze, and make available information on the health of the community, including statistics on health status, community health needs, and epidemiologic and other studies of health problems. Public health surveillance, often called the cornerstone of public health practice, is an essential element of the assessment function.

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This supplement introduces a CDC initiative to monitor and report periodically on the use of a set of selected clinical preventive services in the U.S. adult population in the context of recent national initiatives to improve access to and use of such services.

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Multiple promising but unsustainable attempts have been made to maintain programs integrating primary care and public health since the middle of the last century. During the 1960s, social justice movements expanded access to primary care and began to integrate primary care with public health concepts both to meet community needs for medical care and to begin to address the social determinants of health. Two decades later, the managed care movement offered opportunities for integration of primary care and public health as many employers and government payers attempted to control health costs and bring disease prevention strategies in line with payment mechanisms.

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Since 1946, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has responded to urgent requests from US states, federal agencies, and international organizations through epidemic-assistance investigations (Epi-Aids). The authors describe the first 60 years of Epi-Aids, breadth of problems addressed, evolution of methodologies, scope of activities, and impact of investigations on population health. They reviewed Epi-Aid reports and EIS Bulletins, contacted current and former Epidemic Intelligence Service staff, and systematically searched the PubMed and Web of Science databases.

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The past decade has brought substantial changes in how data related to a community's health are collected, stored, and used to inform decisions about health interventions. Despite these changes, the purpose of public health surveillance has remained constant for more than a century. Public health surveillance is the ongoing, systematic collection, analysis, and interpretation of health-related data with the a priori purpose of preventing or controlling disease or injury, or of identifying unusual events of public health importance, followed by the dissemination and use of information for public health action.

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Trauma complicated by hemorrhagic shock (T/HS) is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States for individuals under the age of 44 years. Initial survivors are susceptible to developing multiple organ failure (MOF), which is thought to be caused, at least in part, by excessive or maladaptive activation of inflammatory pathways. We previously demonstrated in rodents that T/HS results in liver injury that can be prevented by IL-6 administration at the start of resuscitation; however, the contribution of the severity of HS to the extent of liver injury, whether or not resuscitation is required, and the mechanism(s) for the IL-6 protective effect have not been reported.

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