Ventilator-associated pneumonia is a frequent complication of mechanical ventilation, and it carries a significant added mortality. Proper recognition and treatment of pneumonia are associated with improved outcome. Clinical manifestations of pneumonia, chest radiograph findings, and routine analysis of the tracheal aspirate are inadequate, alone or in combination, in diagnosing pneumonia. This article discusses the methodologies that are presently available for diagnosing pneumonia in ventilated patients. Correct use of these techniques helps the clinician to establish a diagnosis with a high degree of reliability and facilitates the rational use of antibiotic treatment.
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J Coll Physicians Surg Pak
January 2025
Department of Pathology, National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, Karachi, Pakistan.
Objective: To determine the frequency of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacterial isolates in respiratory specimens obtained from ventilated patients admitted to critical care units at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD), along with COVID-19-positive cases.
Study Design: An observational study. Place and Duration of the Study: National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, between November 2021 and March 2022.
Crit Care
January 2025
Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
Background: Carbapenem-Resistant Gram-Negative Bacteria, including Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) and Carbapenem-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (CRPA), are common causes of infections in intensive care units (ICUs) in Italy.
Objective: This prospective observational study evaluated the epidemiology, management, microbiological characterization, and outcomes of hospital-acquired CRE or CRPA infections treated in selected ICUs in Italy.
Methods: The study included patients with hospital-acquired infections due to CRE and CRPA treated in 20 ICUs from June 2021 to February 2023.
Surg Infect (Larchmt)
January 2025
Department of Surgery, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
It is unclear why differences in patient location change organisms causing ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). We investigated VAP organisms in three geographically separate trauma intensive care units (TICUs). A retrospective review of organisms causing VAP (bronchoalveolar lavage [BAL] performed ≤7 d after admission and growing ≥10 cfu/mL) in three geographically separate TICUs was conducted.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Infect
January 2025
Department of Critical Care Medicine, Hospital Verge de la Cinta, Tortosa, Pere Virgili Institute for Health Research, Spain.
Background: Bacterial pulmonary superinfections develop in a substantial proportion of mechanically ventilated COVID-19 patients and are associated with prolonged mechanical ventilation requirements and an increased mortality. Albeit recommended, evidence supporting the use of empirical antibiotics at intubation is weak and of low quality. The aim of this study was to elucidate the effect of empirical antibiotics, administered within 24hours of endotracheal intubation, on superinfections, duration of mechanical ventilation, and mortality in mechanically ventilated patients with COVID-19.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSyst Rev
January 2025
Department of Neurosurgery, Pingxiang People's Hospital, Pingxiang, Jiangxi Province, 337000, China.
Background: A systematic appraisal of the comparative efficacy and safety profiles of naso-intestinal tube versus gastric tube feeding in the context of enteral nutrition for mechanically ventilated (MV) patients is imperative. Such an evaluation is essential to inform clinical practice, ensuring that the chosen method of nutritional support is both optimal and safe for this patient population.
Methods: We executed an exhaustive search across PubMed et al.
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