Search results for "Italy"
showing 10 items of 2893 documents
Recombinant norovirus GII.g/GII.12 gastroenteritis in children.
2011
Recombinant GII.g/GII.12 norovirus (NoV) strains emerged in 2008 in Australia and subsequently have been associated with gastroenteritis outbreaks worldwide. In the winter season 2009-2010 GII.12 strains caused 16% of the NoV outbreaks in the United States. During 2009-2010 we also identified GII.g/GII.12 strains during surveillance of sporadic cases of gastroenteritis in Italian children. Severity scores were calculated for the GII.g/GII.12 NoV infections using the Vesikari scale and in two out of three paediatric cases they exceeded the median value calculated for concomitant GII.4 infections. Upon sequence analysis, the Italian strains were found to be recombinant viruses and displayed d…
Genetic heterogeneity and recombination in human type 2 astroviruses
2012
ABSTRACT Novel lineages of human astrovirus (HAstV) types 2, 2c, and 2d have been identified. Upon sequencing of the 3′ end of the genome, the type 2c and 2d HAstVs were found to be open reading frame 1b (ORF1b)-ORF2 recombinant, with ORF1b being derived from type 3 and type 1 HAstVs, respectively. An ORF2 interlineage recombinant strain, 2c/2b, was also identified.
Ventilator-associated Pneumonia and MRSA ST398, Italy
2010
To the Editor: Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) sequence type (ST)398 has become increasingly common in livestock, particularly pigs, in some countries in Europe, such as Spain and Germany (1). In Italy, prevalences as high as 14% and 21.6% in pig-breeding facilities and meat-processing sites, respectively, have been recently reported (1). Possible association of MRSA in animals with infection in humans has been investigated. One study showed a strong relationship between contact with pigs or calves and carriage by persons having direct contact with animals and families of persons who handle animals (2). Moreover, an MRSA prevalence >11.9% has been described by de Boer et …
Molecular characterization of Italian Candida parapsilosis isolates reveals the cryptic presence of the newly described species Candida orthopsilosis…
2012
The authors report the molecular characterization of Candida parapsilosis isolates recovered from the blood and venous central catheter tips of patients admitted to different care units of the Polyclinic Hospital, University of Messina, Italy. Among 97 presumed C. parapsilosis isolates examined, 94 were identified as C. parapsilosis sensu stricto and the remaining 3 isolates were found to belong to the cryptic species Candida orthopsilosis which was recovered only from blood cultures of neonates (<30 days old) born prematurely. No C. metapsilosis was found in this study. This study emphasizes the role of C. parapsilosis as an important nosocomial pathogen, and it also describes, for the fir…
Identification of Shigella sonnei biotype g isolates carrying class 2 integrons in Italy in 2001-2003
2005
ABSTRACT Phenotyping and genotyping have been carried out on 64 epidemic and sporadic isolates of Shigella sonnei identified in Italy in the years 2001 to 2003. Class 2 integron carriage has been also investigated. Isolates from four of the five outbreaks and four of six sporadic cases were biotype g , pulsed-field gel electrophoresis type B, and class 2 integron positive, suggesting emergence and spread of an epidemic clone in Italy.
Validation of intensive care unit-acquired infection surveillance in the Italian SPIN-UTI network
2010
Validity is one of the most critical factors concerning surveillance of nosocomial infections (NIs). This article describes the first validation study of the Italian Nosocomial Infections Surveillance in Intensive Care Units (ICUs) project (SPIN-UTI) surveillance data. The objective was to validate infection data and thus to determine the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of NI data reported on patients in the ICUs participating in the SPIN-UTI network. A validation study was performed at the end of the surveillance period. All medical records including all clinical and laboratory data were reviewed retrospectively by the trained physicians of the validat…
Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 and HIV Co-infection
2010
To the Editor: We report a case of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 infection in a man with serologic evidence of HIV-1 infection. The clinical course was complicated by lung and brain involvement (respiratory failure and lethargy), severe leukopenia, and thrombocytopenia, but complications resolved after treatment with oseltamivir (150 mg 2×/d). In November 2009, a 47-year-old man who had received a diagnosis of hepatitis C infection 8 months earlier sought treatment at Ospedale Santa Maria Nuova, Reggio Emilia, Italy. He had a 3-day history of fever, dry cough, and drowsiness. Eight days before being admitted, the man had resided in the hospital’s inpatient detoxification unit, in which at least 10 i…
Factors influencing hospital infection control policies in Italian hospitals
2003
A study was undertaken to determine the resources available in Italian hospitals for the control of nosocomial infections and the factors favouring a successful approach. During January-May 2000 a questionnaire about infection control was sent to the hospital health director of all Italian National Health System hospitals treating acute patients and with more than 3500 admissions in 1999. An active programme was defined as a hospital infection control committee (HICC) meeting at least four times in 1999, the presence of a doctor with infection control responsibilities, a nurse employed in infection control and at least one surveillance activity and one infection control guideline issued or …
Evaluation of the diagnostic performances of two commercially available assays for the detection of enteric adenovirus antigens
2021
The performance of 2 antigenic commercial assays for enteric adenovirus (AdV) infection, bioNexia Rota-Adeno ImmunoChromatographic Tests (ICT) and LIAISON® Adenovirus ChemiLuminescence Immuno Assays (CLIA), was evaluated on 321 stools from children hospitalized for acute gastroenteritis in Palermo, Italy, using a Real time-PCR (Rt-PCR) as reference method. The CLIA showed higher sensitivity (77% vs 60%), accuracy (94.4 vs 90.9) and concordance (k: 0.81 vs 0.67) with respect to ICT, despite equivalent specificity (98.8%). Using the Ct values of the Rt-PCR as a proxy of the fecal viral load, similar Ct values (mean 9.32 vs 9.89) were observed among the true positive samples, whilst a signific…
Current and future challenges in HCV: insights from an Italian experts panel
2017
Background: The recent availability of direct acting antiviral drugs (DAAs) has drastically changed hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment scenarios, due to the exceedingly high rates of sustained virological response (SVR) and excellent tolerability allowing for treatment at all disease stages. Methods: A panel of Italian experts was convened twice, in November 2016 and January 2017, to provide further support on some open issues and provide guidance for personalized HCV care, also in light of forthcoming regimens. Results and conclusions: Treatment recommendations issued by international and national liver societies to guide clinicians in the management of HCV infection are constantly updated …