In clinical settings where airborne pathogens, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis, are prevalent, they constitute an important threat to health workers and people accessing healthcare. We report key insights from a 3-year project conducted in primary healthcare clinics in South Africa, alongside other recent tuberculosis infection prevention and control (TB-IPC) research. We discuss the fragmentation of TB-IPC policies and budgets; the characteristics of individuals attending clinics with prevalent pulmonary tuberculosis; clinic congestion and patient flow; clinic design and natural ventilation; and the facility-level determinants of the implementation (or not) of TB-IPC interventions. We present modeling studies that describe the contribution of M. tuberculosis transmission in clinics to the community tuberculosis burden and economic evaluations showing that TB-IPC interventions are highly cost-effective. We argue for a set of changes to TB-IPC, including better coordination of policymaking, clinic decongestion, changes to clinic design and building regulations, and budgeting for enablers to sustain implementation of TB-IPC interventions. Additional research is needed to find the most effective means of improving the implementation of TB-IPC interventions; to develop approaches to screening for prevalent pulmonary tuberculosis that do not rely on symptoms; and to identify groups of patients that can be seen in clinic less frequently.

In this point-prevalence survey followed by prospective audit and feedback at 4 tertiary-care hospitals in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, we evaluated whether intravenous amoxicillin-clavulanate may be used as a narrower-spectrum alternative to intravenous piperacillin-tazobactam for patients admitted to general surgery services.

Catheter-related infections increased during surges of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in an 11-hospital system in New York City. A disproportionate number of central-line infections occurred in larger hospitals. Patients with COVID-19 had shorter times from catheter insertion to infection and a higher incidence of infections with enterococci.

Objectives: Antimicrobial resistance is a serious threat to health and economic well-being worldwide. The impact of antibiotic-resistant infections is reflected by higher mortality, increased lengths of hospital stay (LOS), and increased healthcare costs. We analyzed the direct healthcare costs attributable to treating patients infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) in a tertiary-care referral hospital in Vietnam. Methods: A retrospective descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in an intensive care unit (ICU) in the University Medical Center in Ho Chi Minh City from June 2018 to September 2019. Participants were ICU patients diagnosed with either MRSA or CRE infection, and patients infected with non–multidrug-resistant organisms (non-MDROs) were used as the comparison group. Medical records were obtained to collect data on medical services expenditures such as medications, diagnostic testing, medical procedures, and hospital rooms. Statistical significance was determined using the Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests for comparing the average costs and the χ2 test for comparing the proportions. Results: In total, 227 patients, including 37 MRSA-infected patients, 97 CRE-infected patients, and 93 non–MDRO-infected patients, were included in the study. The additional average healthcare costs for a treatment episode of a CRE infection case (367.7 million VND or ~US $16,000) and of a MRSA infection case (139.1 million VND or ~US $6,043) were 3.8 times higher (P < .001) and 1.5 times higher (P < .001), respectively, than the average cost for a non-MDRO case (94.8 million VND or ~US $4,121). Resource use for a CRE infection was higher than that for MRSA infection, with longer antibiotic treatment (13.4 additional days), greater LOS (15.8 additional days), and higher costs (additional 228.6 million VND or ~US $9,939). Conclusions: Multidrug-resistant infections create a heavy economic burden in a low- to middle-income country like Vietnam. The elevated cost was mainly due to longer antibiotic treatment and increased LOS.

Background: Pediatric patients often require central venous catheters (CVCs) for a variety of clinical indications, including medication administration, parenteral nutrition, and venous blood sampling. Patients with CVCs are at risk for central-line–associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI). These hospital-acquired infections are often preventable and may lead to increased morbidity and mortality. Clinicians at a 477-bed, freestanding pediatric academic hospital completed a quality improvement project to identify factors that place pediatric patients at increased risk for CLABSI and to outline strategies aimed at CLABSI reduction for our highest-risk patients. Methods: Project leaders completed a literature review to evaluate current research on the topic and then assembled a project team. The team completed a retrospective analysis and categorization of CLABSI cases and reviewed internal CLABSI root-cause analysis data. The group then completed a case–control analysis to identify risk factors in patients with CVCs who developed CLABSIs, compared to patients with CVCs who did not develop CLABSI. Following this analysis, the team created a CLABSI risk-factor tool for use by bedside nurses. This tool described patients with CLABSI risk factors and outlined best practices for CLABSI prevention. Results: Based upon literature review, root-cause analysis data, and retrospective CLABSI case review over the period from 2017 to 2021, an initial list of 9 potential CLABSI risk factors was compiled. A case–control analysis was performed comparing 97 CLABSI cases with 103 matched controls. Univariate, multivariate, and additional covariate analyses were employed to identify 3 factors placing pediatric patients at increased risk for CLABSI. These included (1) multiple enteral devices (ie, 2 or more devices, including gastrostomy tube, jejunostomy tube, gastrostomy or jejunostomy tube, ostomy, and peritoneal drain); (2) multiple CVC entries (ie, CVC used for medications and venous sampling); and (3) long-term CVC plus parenteral nutrition (CVC in place for >21 days and receiving parenteral nutrition and/or intralipids). Conclusions: Pediatric patients with central venous access are vulnerable to CLABSI, and certain patients may be at increased risk. Frontline clinicians may be able to identify these patients and adopt best practices to prevent infection. A tool for use by bedside nurses can be a useful adjunct to existing CLABSI prevention practices.

Disclosures: None

Background: Patients with recurrent urinary tract infections (rUTI) experience frequent exposure to antimicrobial regimens, leaving them at higher risk for developing antibiotic resistance. Little information on the prevalence of antibiotic resistance among patients with rUTI has been published. Although the IDSA recommends using a prior culture to guide empiric treatment, studies have not examined the predictive ability of a prior culture among patients meeting rUTI criteria. We constructed an antibiogram and evaluated test metrics, including sensitivity, specificity, and positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive values (NPV) of a prior culture (any organism), on predicting resistance (PPV) or susceptibility (NPV) of a future culture among patients with uncomplicated rUTI in an outpatient setting. Methods: We retrospectively extracted electronic health record data from outpatients aged ≥18 years who had an ICD-10 code for cystitis listed twice in 6 months or thrice in 12 months between November 1, 2016, and December 31, 2018. Patients sought care at either urology or primary care practices within an academic medical center in Houston, Texas. Patients with functional or structural abnormalities of the genitourinary tract, signs or symptoms of pyelonephritis, or pregnancy were excluded. Antibiogram data were reported for uropathogens with ≥30 isolates, and intermediate results were considered resistant. Test metrics and Bayes’ PPV and NPV were calculated using standard formulas. Results: We included 597 visits from 232 unique patients. Most were White (63%) and female (92%), and the cohort had a median age of 58 (IQR, 41–68). Among 310 rUTI episodes with a urine culture, 189 (61%) had at least 1 uropathogen isolated, and Escherichia coli (n = 130, 66%) was most common among all 196 uropathogens. E. coli isolates had >20% resistance to 10 of 18 antibiotics (Fig. 1). E. coli resistance to ciprofloxacin was 27.9%, resistance to nitrofurantoin was 5.5%, and resistance to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole was 38.0%. The PPVs for predicting resistance were highest for ceftriaxone (0.86; 95% CI, 0.60–0.96), ciprofloxacin (0.84; 95% CI, 0.63–0.94), and levofloxacin (0.84; 95% CI, 0.63–0.94). NPVs of resistance were highest for gentamicin (0.97; 95% CI, 0.83–1.00), ceftriaxone (0.94; 95% CI, 0.86–0.98), and cefepime (0.94; 95% CI, 0.84–0.98), whereas NPVs for cefuroxime, ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, and nitrofurantoin were all >0.83. Conclusions: We detected considerable antibiotic resistance among patients with rUTI to commonly prescribed antibiotics. Prior urine culture susceptibility demonstrated moderate-to-high PPVs for predicting future resistance to ceftriaxone and fluoroquinolones as well as high NPVs for several cephalosporins and fluoroquinolones, which could inform empiric prescribing choices.

Funding: This investigator-initiated research study was funded by Rebiotix, a Ferring Company.

Disclosures: None

The national influenza pandemic response plan includes short-term school closures as an infection mitigation measure, based on modeling data regarding the role of pediatric populations and schools as drivers of disease spread. Modeled estimates regarding the role of children and their in-school contacts as drivers of community transmission of endemic respiratory viruses were used in part to justify prolonged school closures throughout the United States. However, disease transmission models extrapolated from endemic pathogens to novel ones may underestimate the degree to which spread is driven by population immunity and overestimate the impact of school closures as a means of reducing child contacts, particularly in the longer-term. These errors, in turn, may have caused incorrect estimations about the potential benefits of closing schools on a society level while simultaneously failing to account for the significant harms of long-term educational disruption.

Pandemic response plans need to be updated to include nuances regarding drivers of transmission such as pathogen type, population immunity, and contact patterns, and disease severity in different groups. Expected duration of impact also needs to be considered, recognizing that effectiveness of different interventions, particularly those focused on limiting social interactions, are short-lived. Additionally, future iterations should include risk–benefit assessments. Interventions that are particularly harmful to certain groups, such as school closures are on children, should be de-emphasized and time limited. Finally, pandemic responses should include ongoing and continuous policy re-evaluation and should include a clear plan for de-implementation and de-escalation.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has strained antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) but offered new opportunities. This review summarizes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ASPs, review the contributions ASPs have made in the pandemic response, and highlight the potential role of ASPs in future pandemics.

Altering the appearance of a computerized physician order entry (CPOE) interface reduces misuse of an HIV diagnostic test by 87%, demonstrating that CPOE design is a key component of diagnostic stewardship. Collaboration between infectious disease providers, clinical laboratorians, and information technology (IT) professionals can result in improved quality and decreased costs.

Background: Inappropriate antimicrobial use continues to threaten modern medicine. The ongoing pandemic likely exacerbated this problem because COVID-19 presents similarly to bacterial pneumonia, confusion exists regarding treatment guidelines, and testing turnaround times (TATs) are slow. Our primary object was to quantify antimicrobial use changes during the pandemic to rates before the crisis. A subanalysis within the COVID-19 cohort was completed based on SARS-CoV-2 status. Methods: The pre–COVID-19 period was January–May 2019 and the COVID-19 period was January–May 2020. Subanalyses were used to explore differences in antibiotics use between persons not under investigation (non-PUIs), SARS-CoV-2–negative PUIs, and SARS-CoV-2–positive PUIs. Non-PUI patients were those without respiratory symptoms and/or fever. The χ2 and Wilcoxon signed rank-sum tests were used for analysis. Results: During the 2019 and 2020 study periods, 7,909 and 7,283 patients received >1 antimicrobial, respectively (Figure 1). Overall, antibiotic therapy per 1,000 patient days increased from 633.1 before COVID-19 to 678.5 during COVID-19, a 7.2% increase (Table 1). Notably, broad-spectrum respiratory antibiotics demonstrated a significant increase between pre–COVID-19 and COVID-19 cohorts (p < 0.001). Of the 7,283 patients within the COVID-19 cohort, 34.7% (n = 2,532) were PUI and 13.8% (n = 1,002) of these patients tested SARS-CoV-2 positive. Again, broad-spectrum respiratory antibiotics use was significantly increased for COVID-19 patients (p < 0.001). Of note, the proportion of patients receiving respiratory antibiotics steadily decreased over time (R2 = 0.99). Conclusions: There was a significant increase in antibiotic use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Encouragingly, antimicrobial use decreased over time, likely due to (1) faster TATs, (2) real-time education to clinicians and subsequent de-escalation of unnecessary antimicrobials, and (3) development of treatment guidelines as new research emerged.

Funding: No

Disclosures: None

Figure 1.

Table 1.

A cluster of Rhizobium radiobacter isolates isolated from six unique surgical tissue cultures prompted an investigation ultimately identifying a pseudo-outbreak linked to errant laboratory tissue processing with contaminated, nonsterile saline. Timely response and multidisciplinary collaboration led to tangible system-level interventions and avoidance of unnecessary antibiotic exposures.

A β–lactam plus a macrolide or a respiratory fluoroquinolone alone is recommended as standard empiric antibacterial therapy for non-severe adults hospitalized with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) per Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines. However, the evidence in support of adding empiric atypical antibacterial therapy, and specifically the addition of a macrolide, is conflicting and should be balanced with additional factors: the necessity of covering atypical organisms, benefits of macrolide-associated immunomodulation, harms associated with antibiotic use, and selection for antibiotic-resistant organisms. In this review, we examine the role of atypical coverage in standard treatment regimens for patients admitted with non-severe CAP and specifically focus on the addition of macrolides to β–lactams. We conclude that a subset of patients should not be given atypical coverage as part of their regimen.