Gastrointestinal Infections News

Passively chlorinating water sources using solid tablet chlorine dosers significantly reduced the rate of childhood diarrhea in two communities in Dhaka, Bangladesh, according to results from a double-blind, cluster-randomized controlled trial published in The Lancet Global Health.

Most patients with hepatitis C in Africa have genotypes outside of the common and easily cured genotype 1a and genotype 1b, which has led to a suboptimal rate of sustained virologic response.

The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices cautions against administering the rotavirus vaccine to infants in a NICU or nursery because of the potential for horizontal transmission of the live vaccine-strain virus. It also recommends age restrictions on the timing of the rotavirus vaccine, with the first dose to be given before 15 weeks of age. These intersecting recommendations create a vulnerable population of infants who require a prolonged intensive care stay and might age out of vaccine eligibility, according to a study published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society.

Hospital-acquired Clostridioides difficile infection, or HA-CDI, was associated with a 27% increase in attributable costs and 13% increase in hospital length of stay compared with controls in a Canadian study published in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology.

The incidence of Clostridioides difficile infection, or CDI, among veterans younger than 65 years old in the United States has been “steadily” rising in recent years, and nearly half of all new cases in this cohort are community-associated infections, according to Veterans Health Administration records.

The CDC has reported that 768 people have been infected with Salmonella through contact with backyard poultry in 48 states. Children aged younger than 5 years account for almost one-quarter of all cases.

Research published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society suggests that a generic version of ledipasvir-sofosbuvir — marketed in the United States as Harvoni — is safe and effective for the treatment of teens with hepatitis C virus infection.

A reliance on “pan-culturing” and inappropriate urine culture practices may be contributing to the overdiagnosis of surveillance catheter-associated UTIs, or CAUTIs, delayed diagnosis of alternative infections and excess Clostridioides difficile infections, study findings showed. Researchers said knowledge gaps among nurses and physicians related to ordering cultures may be contributing factors.

Decentralized treatment of hepatitis C using telemedicine clinics achieved a sustained virologic response rate of more than 90% regardless of genotype or presence of cirrhosis, according to a published study conducted in India.

Increasing length of stay, exposure to multiple classes of antibiotics, use of opioids and cirrhosis are all independently associated with an increased risk for hospital-onset Clostridioides difficile infection, or CDI, in asymptomatic colonized patients, but age is not, according to findings from a retrospective cohort study.