Compliance of clinical microbiology laboratories with recommendations for the diagnosis of bloodstream infections: Data from a nationwide survey in Italy.

In 2014, the Italian Working Group for Infections in Critically Ill Patient of the Italian Association of Clinical Microbiologists updated the recommendations for the diagnostic workflow for bloodstream infections (BSI). Two years after publication, a nationwide survey was conducted to assess the compliance with the updated recommendations by clinical microbiology laboratories. A total of 168 microbiologists from 168 laboratories, serving 204 acute care hospitals and postacute care facilities, were interviewed during the period January-October 2016 using a questionnaire consisting of nineteen questions which assessed the level of adherence to various recommendations.

Outbreak of severe Hepatitis A in Eastern Piedmont, Italy.

Hepatitis A (HA) is caused by a hepatovirus from the family Picornaviridae (Hepatitis A Virus, HAV). Transmission occurs mainly by the orofaecal route through food or water contaminated by faeces. Sexual transmission has also been reported among men who have sex with men (MSM).

From soil to blood: first human case of Sphingobacterium hotanense bacteraemia.

This report describes a case of Sphingobacterium hotanense bacteraemia in a patient scratched by a rooster on the right arm. Diagnostic, clinical and therapeutic features are discussed. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of Sphingobacterium hotanense bacteremia reported in the medical literature.

Climate, environment and transmission of malaria.

Malaria, the most common parasitic disease in the world, is transmitted to the human host by mosquitoes of the genus Anopheles. The transmission of malaria requires the interaction between the host, the vector and the parasite.The four species of parasites responsible for human malaria are Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium ovale, Plasmodium malariae and Plasmodium vivax.

[The mosquito-borne viruses in Europe].

Epidemiologic changes of vector-borne diseases in recent years have multiple causes, including climate change. There are about 3500 species of mosquitoes worldwide, three-quarters of which live in tropical and subtropical wetlands. Main viruses transmitted by mosquitoes in Europe belong to the genus Flavivirus; some of them have been recently reported in Italy (Usutu and Japanese encephalitis virus), while others have been circulating for years and autochthonous transmission has been documented (West Nile virus).

Multiple withdrawals from single-use vials: a study on sterility.

Background: Reutilization of single-use vials containing medical drugs is still under discussion. This practice has been adopted as a standard to avoid drug wastage, particularly in developing countries and in the aftermath of disasters. Some studies have assessed sterility of medications stored in single-use vials after utilization as multiple doses; however, most of these were limited to one single drug, included a low number of samples and did not consider an intermediate transfer step from the vial to a disposable syringe.

[Vector transmitted diseases and climate changes in Europe].

The increase in temperatures recorded since the mid-nineteenth century is unprecedented in the history of mankind. The consequences of climate changes are numerous and can affect human health through direct (extreme events, natural disasters) or indirect (alteration of the ecosystem) mechanisms. Climate changes have repercussions on ecosystems, agriculture, social conditions, migration, conflicts and the transmission mode of infectious diseases.

Early diagnosis of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis in a young immunocompetent patient.

A 22-year-old insulin-dependent diabetic male was admitted for diabetic ketoacidosis. He developed hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) for which empirical antibiotic and antifungal therapy was started on the ward. On day 6, clinical and laboratory findings worsened, and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) was performed.

Direct identification of bacteria in blood culture by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry: a new methodological approach.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has recently been demonstrated to be a powerful tool for the rapid identification of bacteria from growing colonies. In order to speed up the identification of bacteria, several authors have evaluated the usefulness of this MALDI-TOF MS technology for the direct and quick identification bacteria from positive blood cultures. The results obtained so far have been encouraging but have also shown some limitations, mainly related to the bacterial growth and to the presence of interference substances belonging to the blood cultures.

CMY-16, a novel acquired AmpC-type beta-lactamase of the CMY/LAT lineage in multifocal monophyletic isolates of Proteus mirabilis from northern Italy.

We report multifocal detection (four different cities in northern Italy) of Proteus mirabilis isolates resistant to both oxyimino- and 7-alpha-methoxy-cephalosporins and producing a novel acquired AmpC-like beta-lactamase. The enzyme, named CMY-16, is a variant of the CMY/LAT lineage, which differs from the closest homologues, CMY-4 and CMY-12, by a single amino acid substitution (A171S or N363S, respectively) and from CMY-2 by two substitutions (A171S and W221R). Expression of the cloned bla(CMY-16) gene in Escherichia coli decreased susceptibility to penicillins, cephalosporins, and aztreonam.