Infectologia

OBJECTIVE: To update the recommendations to support decisions regarding the pharmacological treatment of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in Brazil. METHODS: Experts, including representatives of the Ministry of Health and methodologists, created this guideline. The method used for the rapid development of guidelines was based on the adoption and/or adaptation of existing international guidelines (GRADE ADOLOPMENT) and supported by the e-COVID-19 RecMap platform...

BACKGROUND:  Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) - immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) in people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) has been rarely described in low- and middle-income countries. OBJECTIVE:  To describe the prevalence of PML-IRIS among PLWHA with PML and its main features in a tertiary hospital in Brazil. METHODS:  We performed a retrospective cohort study. We included PLWHA with PML-IRIS patients admitted at Instituto de Infectologia Emílio Ribas , São Paulo, Brazil, between 2011 and 2021...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the accuracy of yellow fever (YF) suspected case definitions from the Brazilian Ministry of Health (BMH) and World Health Organization (WHO), as well as propose and evaluate new definitions of suspected cases, considering confirmed and discarded cases. METHODS: The retrospective study was conducted at the Instituto de Infectologia Emílio Ribas (IIER), using the Epidemiologic Surveillance Form of YF cases. From the confirmed and discarded cases of YF, a logistic regression model was developed...

Febrile neutropenia is one of the main infectious complications experienced by paediatric patients with blood or solid tumours, which, despite the advances in diagnosis and treatment, are still associated with a significant morbidity and mortality. These patients have several risk factors for infection, chief of which are chemotherapy-induced neutropenia, the disruption of cutaneous and mucosal barriers and the use of intravascular devices. Early diagnosis and treatment of febrile neutropenia episodes based on the patient's characteristics is essential in patients with blood and solid tumours to improve their outcomes...

According to World Health Organization estimates, more than 1 million patients aged less than 15 years develop tuberculosis (TB) each year worldwide. In some regions, up to 25% of new TB cases are caused by drug-resistant strains. Although Spain is considered a low-incidence country, several hundred children and adolescents develop TB each year. The importance of paediatric TB has been minimized for years due to the lack of microbiological confirmation in many patients and because these patients are not usually contagious...

BACKGROUND: Sporotrichosis is a subcutaneous or implantation mycosis caused by some species of the genus Sporothrix. Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, experiences hyperendemic levels of zoonotic sporotrichosis, with increasing cases of disseminated disease, especially in people living with HIV (PLHIV). Involvement of the nasal mucosa is rare and occurs isolated or in disseminated cases, with a delayed resolution. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: This study aimed to describe the epidemiological, clinical, and therapeutic profiles of 37 cases of sporotrichosis with involvement of the nasal mucosa treated at the ear, nose, and throat (ENT) outpatient clinic of the Instituto Nacional de Infectologia Evandro Chagas, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, from 1998 to 2020...

BACKGROUND: By October 30, 2022, 76,871 cases of mpox were reported worldwide, with 20,614 cases in Latin America. This study reports characteristics of a case series of suspected and confirmed mpox cases at a referral infectious diseases center in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. METHODS: This was a single-center, prospective, observational cohort study that enrolled all patients with suspected mpox between June 12 and August 19, 2022. Mpox was confirmed by a PCR test. We compared characteristics of confirmed and non-confirmed cases, and among confirmed cases according to HIV status using distribution tests...

In the past few years, antimicrobial resistance has increased, becoming a serious public health problem. The irrational use of antimicrobials is one of the main contributors to antimicrobial resistance. The paediatric population is not free from this problem, as antimicrobials are widely prescribed in this age group, often inappropriately. The introduction of antimicrobial stewardship programmes (ASPs) has proven crucial in curbing the emergence of antimicrobial resistance. At the international level, the need to develop specific paediatric ASPs has been recognised on account of the differences between adult and paediatric patients as concerns infection and approaches to diagnosis and treatment...

The COVID-19 disease is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus and was declared a pandemic by the WHO on March 11, 2020. To date, more than 500 million people have been infected and it has caused over 6 million deaths worldwide. People that belong to the most vulnerable risk groups, such as those at the extremes of life, patients with chronic comorbidities and those with severe immunosuppression, are especially susceptible to developing a severe form of COVID-19 infection and death. Subjects living with HIV, especially those in precarious immunological conditions or those in whom antiretroviral therapy is yet to be started, may be at risk of developing complications related to COVID-19, as observed with other infectious diseases...

Enterobacterales co-producing carbapenemases have awakened health alerts in Latin America. Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales harboring KPC and NDM-1 are resistant to almost all existing antibiotics. Panama reports KPC since 2010, and NDM since 2011, however, Enterobacterales with double carbapenemase production is new to our hospitals. We present the first two isolates of Enterobacter cloacae complex co-producing KPC and NDM, in a second level hospital in Panama City. Strengthening epidemiological surveillance systems in hospitals allows to carry out timely detection of these new combinations of resistance; to implement outbreak prevention and control measures...

Infection by Pneumocystis jirovecii in patients with severe respiratory infection caused by SARS-CoV-2 is a situation that we must take into account today. Corticotherapy along with other risk factors predisposes to it. It is a diagnostic challenge and, after treatment, the prognosis is favorable. We report the case of a male with severe pneumonia due to SARS-CoV-2 who received corticosteroid treatment, later developing pneumonia due to P. jiroveci.

The association between some bacterial infections and colon cancer is well documented. The most described is Streptococcus bovis infection. Another bacteria related to intestinal neoplasms is Clostridium septicum. We present the case of a 62-year-old man who consulted for abdominal pain associated with diarrhea and fever. A computed tomography scan of the abdomen and pelvis was performed, which revealed thickening of the cecum walls with an apparent break in continuity at its free edge. An exploratory laparotomy was performed which confirmed the presence of peritonitis and cecal perforation...

Chromoblastomycosis is a fungal infection of the skin and subcutaneous tissue, of chronic evolution, caused by dematiaceous fungi. The disease occurs worldwide, mainly in tropical and subtropical regions, but in regions like Chile there is only one report of a human case more than 30 years ago. We present the case of a 46-year-old Haitian man, resident in Chile, with verrucous plaques in the right anterior tibial area of one year of evolution. The diagnosis of chromoblastomycosis was confirmed when muriform cells and dematiaceous colonies were observed in the histopathological analysis and the direct microscopy, respectively...

Neisseria meningitidis is a Gram-negative bacterium frequently associated with invasive diseases with high mortality. Although its natural reservoir is the human nasopharynx, in recent years there have been increasing reports of isolation of this agent in the anorectal mucosa, mainly in men who have sex with men (MSM). We present the case of an HIV-positive MSM who consulted for urethritis and primary syphilis, in which N. meningitidis was isolated in an anorectal specimen. He was treated empirically with ceftriaxone and azithromycin, and a post-treatment control culture was negative...

Lymphogranuloma venereum (LGV) is a sexually transmitted infection caused by Chlamydia trachomatis bacteria. In the past years, it has emerged as a relevant infectious agent, mainly affecting men who have sex with men (MSM), frequently associated with other sexually transmitted infections as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and syphilis. Even though genital lesions correspond to the classical presentation of LGV, nowadays anorectal syndrome is more frequently reported. We present a MSM patient, HIV infected, being treated with antiretroviral drugs, with a history of recurrent genital herpes, also recently treated for a syphilis in a latent stage...

Along history, infectious diseases have had a direct influence in the development of humanity, with tuberculosis showing a leading role. Despite this disease being the main cause of mortality among infectious diseases, it remains neglected and constitutes a serious public health problem, especially among the poorest countries in the world. Tuberculosis greatest importance goes beyond Medicine, and a holistic view of the disease allows us to comprehend the economic and social development of a nation. Despite a historically successful control program in Chile, current figures are not auspicious and force upon us the need to address this problem with a multidisciplinary approach...

BACKGROUND: Due to their anti-inflammatory properties, it has been suggested that the use of statins could influence the evolution of influenza virus infection. AIM: To evaluate the effect of statin therapy on mortality from influenza. METHODS: A meta-analysis that included studies evaluating the use of statins in patients with influenza and reporting data on mortality, after searching the PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Controlled Trials databases, was performed...

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This article reconstructs the main arguments against vaccination that circulated in Chile during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. For this purpose, we will study the figure of Alfredo Helsby Hazell, who was the primary opponent of vaccination in Chile and published several writings in which he developed and disseminated his ideas. We observe that Helsby argued his rejection of vaccination from the defence of hygienism and distrust of the scientific explanations that began to spread from the germ theory...

BACKGROUND: The spread of SARS-CoV-2 required widespread lockdown to mitigate the pandemic. Argentine authorities imposed preventive social isolation for 234 days (March 20th to November 9th 2020). This measure led to major changes in the population's lifestyle. AIM: To examine the influence of COVID-19 lockdown measures on the metabolic profile of HIV-infected patients in Argentina. METHODS: Retrospective cohort study of 10,239 HIV-infected patients under follow up in a private clinic for HIV care...