Publications by authors named "W Laffut"

Article Synopsis
  • The study focuses on SARS-CoV-2 lineage B.1.214.2, identified in Belgium in January 2021, which has a mutation that may affect its transmissibility and immune evasion, similar to the Omicron variant.
  • This variant spread significantly in Central Africa and Europe, with its origin traced back to the Republic of the Congo, and its transmission correlated with human travel patterns.
  • In Belgian nursing homes, the variant led to moderately severe outcomes, and unique immune responses in elderly patients suggest a need for targeted nasal vaccine strategies against emerging variants.
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Importance: Staphylococcus aureus surgical site infections (SSIs) and bloodstream infections (BSIs) are important complications of surgical procedures for which prevention remains suboptimal. Contemporary data on the incidence of and etiologic factors for these infections are needed to support the development of improved preventive strategies.

Objectives: To assess the occurrence of postoperative S aureus SSIs and BSIs and quantify its association with patient-related and contextual factors.

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Background: We aimed to provide regional data on clinical symptoms, medical resource utilization (MRU), and risk factors for increased MRU in hospitalized respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-infected Belgian pediatric population.

Methods: This prospective, multicenter study enrolled RSV (+) hospitalized children (aged ≤5y) during the 2013-2015 RSV seasons. RSV was diagnosed within 24h of hospitalization.

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Introduction: The incidence of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections in the Belgian community is mainly estimated based on test results of patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19)-like symptoms. The aim of this study was to investigate the evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) positivity ratio and distribution of viral loads within a cohort of asymptomatic patients screened prior hospitalization or surgery, stratified by age category.

Materials/methods: We retrospectively studied data on SARS-CoV-2 real-time RT-PCR detection in respiratory tract samples of asymptomatic patients screened pre-hospitalization or pre-surgery in nine Belgian hospitals located in Flanders over a 12-month period (1 April 2020-31 March 2021).

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The objective of this study was to compare the performance of the Idylla™ Respiratory (IFV-RSV) panel to the GeneXpert Xpert® Flu/RSV assay and establish the performance of a midturbinate swab compared to nasopharyngeal sampling. Considering GeneXpert® assay as imperfect reference standard, a positive percentage agreement between both assays of 98-100% for influenza A and 96-99% for influenza B could be calculated when 354 nasopharyngeal and 325 midturbinate swabs were retrospectively analyzed. Comparing midturbinate samples to nasopharyngeal specimens of 321 subjects, positive percentage agreement varied from 42% to 94% depending on both target virus and assay used.

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