Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(1):36-38

Salmonella enterica with nonclassical quinolone resistance phenotype in pediatric patients                                 
 


Mª JOSÉ GONZÁLEZ-ABAD, MERCEDES ALONSO-SANZ      
        

 

Introduction. Decreased susceptibility to fluoroquinolones in Salmonella spp. may lead to treatment failures. The use of ciprofloxacin for extraintestinal and serious intestinal Salmonella infections in children is controversial and therefore the clinical relevance of these strains is not significant. Consequently little is know about the quinolone resistance of strains Salmonella of our paediatric population. The objective of this study was to assess the incidence of nonclassical quinolone resistance phenotype in paediatric patients.
Material and methods. Two hundred and sixty eight Salmonella spp. from Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús of Madrid (2009-2013) were tested against nalidixic acid and ciprofloxacin by microdilution. Moreover, 146 strains (2011-2013) were tested against ciprofloxacin by E-test. Reduced ciprofloxacin susceptibility was defined as a MIC of 0.125-1 mg/L.
Results. Of 42 isolates with reduced ciprofloxacin susceptibility, four isolates showing nonclassical quinolone resistance phenotype. Three were confirmed as carrying of plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance-conferring genes qnr.
Conclusions. The percentage of strains with a genotype that confers a nonclassical quinolone resistance phenotype is low in our series. The identification of these isolates is difficult using conventional methods, but its ability of horizontal spread recommends an appropriate identification. Taking into account the low isolation rate of these strains in this study, evaluation of ciprofloxacin MIC on every nalidixic acid susceptible strain would not be cost effective. Alternatively, we propose to evaluate periodically any changing trend.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(1):36-38 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(1):39-46

Burden of influenza virus type B and mismatch with the flu vaccine in Spain                                 
 


JOSE Mª EIROS-BOUZA, ALBERTO PÉREZ-RUBIO      
        

 

Introduction. Since the 80s two lineages of type B viruses are co – circulating in the world. Antigenic differences between them are important and it leads to lack of cross-reactivity. The impact on the burden of disease due to influenza B virus, poor foresight in estimating which of the two lineages of B viruses circulate in the season, and the consequent lack of immunity in case of including the wrong strain make that the availability of the quadrivalent vaccine is very useful. The aim of this paper is to analyze the past influenza seasons in Spain to assess the burden of disease, divergence between the vaccine strain and the circulating B and viral characteristics associated with type B in each seasonal epidemic.
Material and methods. Review of all reports issued by the Influenza Surveillance System in Spain since the 2003-2004 season to 2012-2013.
Results. Over the past influenza seasons, although type A was present mostly, circulation of influenza B virus in each season was observed, even being co – dominant in some of them. In a high number of seasons the divergence between the vaccine strain and the circulating strain lineage has been observed
Conclusions. The protective effect of influenza vaccine has varied depending on the type / subtype of influenza virus studied. The vaccine effectiveness against influenza infection by influenza B virus has varied greatly depending on the season analyzed.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(1):39-46 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(1):47-53

A practice-based observational study identifying factors associated with the use of high-dose tigecycline in the treatment of secondary peritonitis in severely ill patients                                 
 


EMILIO MASEDA, ALEJANDRO SUÁREZ-DE-LA-RICA, VÍCTOR ANILLO, PATRICIA SALGADO,
EDUARDO TAMAYO, CARLOS A. GARCÍA-BERNEDO, FERNANDO RAMASCO, MARÍA-JOSÉ VILLAGRÁN, ARACELI LÓPEZ-TOFIÑO, MARÍA-JOSÉ GIMÉNEZ, JUAN-JOSÉ GRANIZO, CARMEN HERNÁNDEZ-GANCEDO, LORENZO AGUILAR, FERNANDO GILSANZ      
        

 

Introduction. Based on tigecycline linear pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamics, dose increases have been advocated to maximise activity especially when severe infections with high bacterial load and/or multidrug resistance are suspected. This practice-based observational study explored factors associated with tigecycline administration (100 mg/12h, 200 mg loading dose) in severely ill patients with complicated intra-abdominal infection (cIAI) admitted to four Surgical Critical Care Units (SCCUs).
Methods. Medical records of all consecutive adult patients with cIAI and controlled infection source requiring surgery and admission for ≥48h to SCCU were reviewed and divided into patients treated with a regimen including tigecycline (tigecycline group) and those that not (control group). A logistic regression model was performed using “tigecycline administration” (dependent variable) and variables showing differences (p≤0.1) in bivariate analyses (independent variables).
Results. One hundred and twenty one patients were included. In the tigecycline group, higher percentage of patients(vs. controls) presented colon as surgical site (66.7% vs. 41.8%, p=0.006), nosocomial infection (55.6% vs. 26.9%, p=0.001), mechanical ventilation (48.1% vs. 28.4%, p=0.025), chronic renal replacement therapy (40.7% vs. 19.4%, p=0.008), septic shock (72.2% vs. 46.3%, p=0.004), and higher values of SAPS II (48.0±15.0 vs. 39.6±15.5, p=0.003), SOFA at admission (7.0±3.3 vs. 5.5±3.7, p=0.020), lactate-24h (2.5±2.8 vs. 1.6±0.9, p=0.029) and CRP-72h (207.4±87.9 vs. 163.7±76.8, p=0.021). In the multivariate analysis (R2=0.187, p<0.001) nosocomial infection (OR=7.721; 95%CI=2.193, 27.179; p=0.001), colon as infection site (OR=4.338; 95%CI=1.432, 13.145; p=0.009) and CRP-72h (OR=1.009 per-unit; 95%CI=1.002, 1.016; p=0.012) were associated with tigecycline administration.
Conclusions. In severely ill patients with cIAI, high-dose tigecycline administration was associated with nosocomial origin of cIAI and colon as source infection site.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(1):47-53 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):79-85

An analysis of the association between genotype and antimicrobial resistance in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus clinical isolates                                 
 


VICENTE AGUADERO, CARMEN GONZÁLEZ-VELASCO, ANA VINDEL, MIGUEL GONZÁLEZ-VELASCO, JUAN JOSÉ MORENO      
        

 

Genotyping methods are useful resources for the surveillance, detection, prevention and control of multidrug-resistant nosocomial agents, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). An understanding of the association between genotype and antibiotic susceptibility in MRSA clones may be useful in the surveillance of MRSA and to avoid inappropriate treatment future resistance. We genotyped MRSA clinical isolates from the Extremadura region of Spain using pulsed field electrophoresis (PFGE) and analyzed the spectrum of antibiotic susceptibility for each isolate to determine whether resistance is associated with specific genotypes. PFGE revealed six major genotypes: E8a (25%), E7b (17%), E7a (12%), E8B (8%), E10 (6%), and E20 (4%). Isolates with the genotypes E8a and E10 exhibit higher resistance ratios for levofloxacin than isolates with the other major pulsotypes. Similar results were obtained for isolates with the E20 pulsotype with respect to mupirocin. Although we identified no vancomycin-, tigecycline-, linezolid- or daptomycin-resistant strains, we observed significant differences in the mean MIC values obtained for some of these drugs among the major genotypes. Specifically, isolates with the E7b, E8b, and E20 genotypes have signif-icantly higher MICs of tigecycline, vancomycin and linezolid, respectively, than the most sensitive pulsotypes. Isolates with the E8b profile also exhibit a significantly higher rate of re-duced vancomycin susceptibility (RVS) (i.e., MIC between 1 and 2 mg/L) than clones with the E10 and E8a profiles. In conclusion, we report associations between genotype and antibiotic sensitivity that should be considered in programs for monitor-ing and controlling MRSA in health care settings.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):79-85 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):86-91

Detection of unusual uropathogens during a period of three years in a regional hospital                                 
 


CRISTINA GÓMEZ-CAMARASA, CARMEN LIÉBANA-MARTOS, JOSÉ MARÍA NAVARRO-MARÍ, JOSÉ GUTIÉRREZ-FERNÁNDEZ      
        

 

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are one of the most fre-quent both in the community and in hospitals infectious diseases. The etiology of urinary tract infections is well established but may vary depending on various factors such as age, the presence of underlying diseases such as diabetes, instrumental procedures such as urinary catheterization or exposure to antibiotics or previous hospitalizations.  UTIs diagnosed cases were retrospectively reviewed for unusual microorganisms over a period of 3 years (2011-2013) in the Microbiology Laboratory of the Hospital Virgen de las Nieves of Granada (Spain), following the standard operating procedure, which we describe four cases caused by Trichosporon asahii, Aerococcus urinae, Pasteurella bettyae and Neisseria sicca. Hence the importance of having in the Clinical Microbiology Laboratory of the tools necessary to detection UTIs and reach a correct identification in all cases.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):86-91 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):92-97

Mortality among methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus carriers in long-term care facilities                                  
 


ESTER VENDRELL, JOSEP A CAPDEVILA, PILAR BARRUFET, LLUÍS FORCE, GORETTI SAUCA, ENCARNA MARTÍNEZ, ELISABET PALOMERA, MATEU SERRA-PRAT, JORDI CORNUDELLA, ANNABEL LLOPIS, MªASUNCIÓN ROBLEDO, CRISÓSTOMO VÁZQUEZ      
        

 

Introduction. Little is known about the natural course of patients with chronic stable illnesses colonized with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The aim is to determine the impact of MRSA colonization in mortality among long-term health care facility (LTHCF) residents.
Method. A multicenter, prospective, observational study was designed. Residents in 4 LTHCFs were classified according to MRSA carriage status and followed for 12 months. Treatment consisted of 5 days of nasal mupirocin in MRSA carriers.
Results. Ninety-three MRSA-carriers among 413 residents were identified. Thirty-one MRSA-colonized patients died during the study period, 11 of whom from an infectious disease. Independent predictors of their higher mortality rates included heart failure, current neoplasm, MRSA carriage and COPD at 3 months and these same factors plus stroke, Bar-thel index <40, pressure ulcers, and older age at 12 months. MRSA-persistence was 35% and 62.5% at 3 and 12 months, respectively.
Conclusions. MRSA colonization among frail LTHCFs residents is highly prevalent, and is associated with higher mortality. Despite treatment of MRSA carriers, many remained colonized. Factors that promote persistence of MRSA colonization, and the impact of their modification on mortality rates in these patients, need further investigation.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):92-97 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):98-100

Phenotypic methods for detection of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus                                 
 


GERTRUDIS HORNA, LIZETH ASTOCONDOR, JAN JACOBS, CORALITH GARCÍA      
        

 
Background.  Cefoxitin is a potent inducer of the mecA gene. It is currently as a screening recommended method for presumptive identification of isolates of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The aim of the study was to compare the sensitivity and specificity of the cefoxitin disc diffusion (30μg) to oxacillin agar screening from detection of the mecA gene by PCR.
Methods. Three hundred thirty-one strains of S. aureus isolated from blood cultures of patients from hospitals in Lima were used in the study. The following tests were performed: oxacillin screening agar (plates were inoculated with 4% NaCl and 6 mg/L of oxacillin), cefoxitin disc diffusion test (30 ug) and PCR to amplify the mecA gene.
Results.  The mecA gene was detected in 165 out of 331 S. aureus isolates. Thus, the frequency of detection of MRSA was 50%. The evaluation of the cefoxitin disc diffusion test showed a 96.3% and 90.9% of sensitivity and specificity, respectively.
Conclusion. Cefoxitin disc diffusion test correlated well with detection of the mecA gene by PCR. Therefore, this test can be an alternative to PCR for detection of MRSA in limited resources settings.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):98-100 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):101-108

Genotypic and phenotypic diversity in Enterococcus faecalis: is agar invasion a pathogenicity score?                                 
 


FABIO CAFINI, FERNANDO GÓMEZ-AGUADO, MARÍA TERESA CORCUERA, CARMEN RAMOS, PEDRO BAS, LUIS COLLADO, MARÍA LUISA GÓMEZ-LUS, JOSÉ PRIETO      
        

 

Objectives. The main objective of the present study is to analyze different genotypic and phenotypic traits related to virulence in Enterococcus faecalis, as well as evaluated the agar invasion phenotype in a collection of isolates with different clinical origins. 
Material and methods. Seventy-nine E. faecalis isolates, with invasive and non-invasive clinical origins, have been used in this work. Presence of cytolysin activator (cylA), gelatinase (gelE), surface protein (esp), aggregation substance (asa1), endocarditis antigen (efaA), and collagen-binding protein (ace) have been analyzed by PCR. Phenotypic characterization included gelatinase activity, haemolysin production, biofilm formation and agar invasion. 
Results. All the isolates tested harboured at least one of the virulence determinants. The 95.5% of isolates from haematologic samples were positive for agar invasion test, significantly higher than isolates from non-invasive diseases. A significant reduction in relative invasion area was observed in three selected agar-invasive strains after 15 serial passages.
Conclusions. It has been observed a significant high prevalence of agar-invasion positive isolates among strains belonged to haematological samples. Agar invasiveness is reduced after adaptation of clinical isolates to laboratory conditions, showing that agar invasion phenotype can be modulate by culture conditions as other virulence factors observed in different bacterial species.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(2):101-108 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(3):116-124

Hydatidosis: epidemiological, clinical, diagnostic and therapeutic aspects                                 
 


CARLOS ARMIÑANZAS, MANUEL GUTIÉRREZ-CUADRA, MARÍA CARMEN FARIÑAS      
        

Hydatidosis or cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a parasitic zoonosis caused by Echinococcus granulosus. Its life cycle involves dogs, sheep and sometimes other animals. CE has a worldwide distribution, with greater prevalence in temperate zones. In Spain, Castile and León, La Rioja, Navarre, Aragón, and the Mediterranean coast are the areas where it is most commonly diagnosed, although there have also been published cases in other regions, such as Cantabria. Clinical signs and symptoms of EC may be related to the mass effect of the cyst, its superinfection or anaphylactic reactions secondary to its rupture. Because of its slow growth, diagnosis is usually made in adulthood by combining clinical symptoms with imaging and serological tests. There is no universal consensus on the management of CE. Treatment is based mainly on three pillars: medical treatment (mainly albendazole), surgery, and percutaneous drainage. The choice of the most appropriate approach is based on the patient’s symptoms and the characteristics of the cysts.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(3):116-124 [pdf]

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(3):125-131

The late media emergency of smallpox vaccine, news coverage of Spanish press (1999-2004)                                 
 


PEDRO JAVIER MARTÍNEZ-MARTINEZ,  JOSÉ TUELLS, GEMA COLMENAR-JARILLO      
        

 

Introduction. Discussions on the need for smallpox virus preservation in 1999 focused attention on an eradicated disease 20 years ago. Smallpox was replaced as a potential candidate to be used as a bioterrorist weapon because of the international alarm scenario produced after the 11/9 events in USA. The reactivation of a vaccine which remained forgotten was the direct consequence. The initial target groups were the security forces of America. Spain was also among the countries that were interested in acquiring the smallpox vaccine. The aim of this study is to analyze the considerable media coverage of smallpox obtained in our country.
Methods. Systematic review of published news in the four largest national daily newspapers (ABC, El Mundo, El País and La Vanguardia) for the period 1999-2004 of the Dow Jones Factiva document database. “Smallpox” were used as a key word. From the obtained data, a qualitative and quantitative analysis was done.
Results. 416 reviews were analyzed; the newspaper El Mundo was the most interested in these news (158 citations, 37.98%). Most of the news were published in 2003 (152, 36.5%) The year with more news about smallpox (2003) coincides with the purchase of vaccines in Spain. The type of messages in the news was highly changeable over this six-year period. Those related to “politics and diplomacy”, “epidemiological risk”, “bioterrorism” and “vaccine” were predominant.
Conclusions. The alarm raised around the smallpox vaccination was a media phenomenon due to political strategy issues rather than a real public health problem.

Rev Esp Quimioter 2015:28(3):125-131 [pdf]