Journal of Infection and Chemotherapy : Official Journal of the Japan Society of Chemotherapy

INTRODUCTION: Limited prospective evidence has been accumulated regarding the efficacy and safety of ceftriaxone (CTRX) based on differences in dosage and administration of the drug as empiric therapy for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). This study aimed to compare initial treatment failure, 30-day mortality, and side effects between two groups of hospitalized adult CAP patients: one receiving intravenous CTRX at 1g twice daily (1gq12hr) and the other receiving 2g once daily (2gq24hr)...

OBJECTIVE: Mycobacterium avium complex pulmonary disease (MAC-PD) is occasionally complicated by interstitial lung disease (ILD) in clinical practice, but clinical studies are limited. This study aims to elucidate the clinical and imaging characteristics of MAC-PD in patients with ILD. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed imaging and clinical data from medical records of 54 consecutive ILD patients diagnosed with MAC-PD from 2011 to 2021 at our institution...

AIM: This phase 1 study (NCT04306302) evaluated the safety, reactogenicity, and immunogenicity of ExPEC10V (VAC52416) in healthy Japanese adults. METHOD: The randomized, double-blind, single-center study included 28-day screening, vaccination (Day 1), 30-day safety and immunogenicity follow-up and 181-day serious adverse events (SAEs) follow-up. Participants (60-85 years) were enrolled in dose-ascending approach and randomized to medium- and high-doses of ExPEC10V (n=8 in each dose group) and placebo (n=8)...

INTRODUCTION: Infections caused by Gram-negative bacilli (GNB) in the emergency department (ED) are common, and the blood cultures taken at the visit can turn positive often after the discharge. However, the differences in the clinical outcomes depending on the subsequent decision-making, either to giving the patients intravenous or oral antibiotics remain unknown. METHODS: A single-center retrospective observational study was conducted for the outcome of the patients whose blood cultures at the visit turned positive and detected GNB...

BACKGROUND: Teicoplanin (TEIC) is a nephrotoxic agent. However, little is known about the effects of concomitant medications on nephrotoxicity. In this study, we investigated the effects of concomitant drugs on nephrotoxicity. METHODS: A retrospective observational case-control study was conducted on patients (≥18 years) who started TEIC at the Tokyo Dental College, Ichikawa General Hospital, between January 2013 and April 2023. The primary outcome was nephrotoxicity, defined as an increase in serum creatinine levels of ≥50 % or ≥0...

BACKGROUND: AWaRe (Access, Watch, Reserve) classification proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO) holds potential for assessing antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs). However, increase in antibiotics for non-infectious treatment might undermine the effectiveness of using the AWaRe classification for assessing ASPs. The study aimed to evaluate the antimicrobial usage by AWaRe classification and specify issues for assessing ASPs. METHODS: The retrospective study was conducted in a single center within an 845-bed hospital...

Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae is a common zoonotic pathogen that rarely causes diseases in humans. It has three main disease manifestations: localized cutaneous, disseminated cutaneous, and a systemic form of infections, typically characterized as bacteremia with or without endocarditis. Human infections are often associated with occupational exposure to animals, animal products, or their excreta. We present a case of a 60-year-old woman found to have E. rhusiopathiae bacteremia associated with a leg laceration sustained after she fell into a sewer drain...

We have previously reported a clinical case in which a hospitalized patient with a history of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for acute myeloid leukemia was persistently infected with SARS-CoV-2. This study investigated the neutralizing activity of patient sera against cultured viruses isolated at each time point. We also continued to decipher and analyze the whole-genome sequence of the virus. The results showed that the neutralizing activity against the cultured virus at each time point was higher in the sera collected in the late stage of infection...

INTRODUCTION: Information on the clinical utility of daptomycin in patients with persistent bacteremia and daptomycin's pharmacokinetic data in pediatric patients has been sparse. In addition, reports on the experience of using daptomycin in children undergoing solid organ transplantation have been extremely limited. The authors describe a pediatric case of persistent bacteremia after solid organ transplantation successfully treated by daptomycin. Blood daptomycin concentrations were measured by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and pharmacokinetic analysis was performed...

BACKGROUND: The National Early Warning Score 2 (NEWS2) standardizes assessment and response to acute illnesses using vital signs. Whether NEWS2 is useful in predicting the prognosis of candidemia remains to be determined. METHODS: Our study, conducted as a rigorous and retrospective analysis, examined patients with candidemia who were hospitalized between January 2014 and December 2023. We assessed candidemia severity using the Pitt Bacteremia Score (PBS) and NEWS2, while the Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) was used to assess underlying medical conditions...

BACKGROUND: Efforts to promote antimicrobial stewardship aimed at reducing antimicrobial resistance are necessary regardless of hospital scale owing to delays in new antimicrobial development. We aimed to evaluate the effects of pharmacist-driven interventions on broad-spectrum antimicrobial usage and the prognosis of patients with bacteremia in a medium-sized hospital lacking infectious disease physicians and a microbiology laboratory. METHODS: This single-center, retrospective, pragmatic, quasi-experimental study was conducted to compare pre- and post-intervention effects at Saiseikai Futsukaichi Hospital...

Blood culture-negative infective endocarditis (BCNE) has a poorer prognosis than culture-positive cases. Thus, it is crucial to determine the pathogenic microorganism using molecular diagnostic techniques, in addition to conventional techniques, including cultures of blood and/or resected valve tissue. Herein, we report a case of culture-negative infective endocarditis (IE) caused by Neisseria bacilliformis, as identified by 16S rRNA analysis of valve tissue. N. bacilliformis a non-gonococcal and non-meningococcal Neisseria species that partially comprises the oropharyngeal microbiome, and reports of invasive infections have increased recently...

This study aimed to clarify changes in antimicrobial prescribing trends in pediatric clinics before and after the chronic shortage of amoxicillin and amoxicillin-clavulanic acid from 2023 in Japan. Amoxicillin and amoxicillin-clavulanic acid have been in chronic short supply since May 24, 2023 due to increased demand. It is unclear whether this situation has changed the type of oral antimicrobials prescribed by clinics. A retrospective observational study was conducted to analyze antimicrobial prescriptions in pediatric clinics between January and December 2023...

BACKGROUND: Acute lung injury (ALI) is a serious and rapidly progressing pulmonary disorder with a high mortality rate. In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between miR-222 and NF-κB (p65) activation in ALI. METHODS: ALI was induced in mice using lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Lung tissues and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were collected for analysis. MH-S cell lines were used as an ALI model. Various techniques including histopathology, molecular analysis, and cell culture assays were employed...

BACKGROUND: Daptomycin is a lipopeptide antibiotic with a broad spectrum of activity against gram-positive bacteria. Although information on daptomycin-induced adverse events can be found in clinical trials, data regarding the impact of age on these events are insufficient. Therefore, we evaluated whether age affects the occurrence of daptomycin-induced adverse events using adverse drug event reports in post-marketing stages provided by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). METHODS: A total dataset of 7,307 reports of patients treated with daptomycin in the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System were analyzed...

INTRODUCTION: The diagnostic tools of nucleic acid amplification tests and antigen tests have been extensively employed for the detection of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Although the reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT)-PCR test has high sensitivity and specificity, it is a time-consuming and labor-intensive process. On the other hand, antigen tests are simple and prompt, however, their low sensitivity and potential for false positives have been identified as limitations...

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), remains a global public health threat. Although several effective vaccines and therapeutics have been developed, continuous emergence of new variants necessitates development of drugs with different mechanisms of action. Recent studies indicate that cepharanthine, a chemical derivative purified from Stephania cepharantha, inhibits SARS-CoV-2 replication in vitro. METHODS: This study examined the in vivo effects of cepharanthine using a Syrian hamster SARS-CoV-2 infection model...

INTRODUCTION: Since the first report of a novel coronavirus infection caused by SARS-CoV-2 in late 2019, the infection has spread rapidly and had a significant impact on our lives. In the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, there was no adequate testing system in place, despite an urgent need for infection control measures in student dormitories. METHODS: We have been monitoring SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater as part of our infection control efforts in the university facilities since fall 2020...

OBJECTIVES: Multidrug resistant infections present a treatment challenge for clinicians. These infections have been associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Recently, there has been increasing discussion in the literature that high dose extended infusion of meropenem may be helpful. We aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of high dose extended infusion of meropenem in the treatment of highly resistant Gram-negative infections. METHODS: This retrospective observational study was conducted between December 2014 and December 2020 at Hacettepe University Ihsan Dogramaci Children's Hospital...

The term "hydatid disease" refers to echinococcosis. Echinococcosis is a zoonotic disease caused by the larval stage of the Echinococcus parasite. The disease is widespread in regions where the parasite is endemic, particularly in developing nations like India. However, there are only a couple of documented case studies of echinococcosis associated with hematological malignancy in the literature. We present an extremely uncommon case of a 36-year-old male who had liver hydatidosis and was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML)-M1...