Background: Few studies have evaluated the impact of air pollution levels on the severity of exacerbations. Thus, we compared the relative risks posed by air pollutant levels on moderate and severe exacerbations. Methods: Exacerbation episodes of 618 from 143 adult asthmatics were retrospectively collected between 2005 and 2015 in a tertiary hospital of Korea. Air pollution GPS [...]
From India to Latin America, efforts are being made to reduce the rise and spread of antibiotic-resistant superbugs. Read and watch more here... Photo Credit: Maksym Kozlenko [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons
Doctors in Canada are being warned about the emergence of an extremely contagious pathogen described as a “fungal superbug” that is resistant to most medications and can be deadly for patients who are already sick. First identified in Japan 10 years ago, the fungus Candida auris or C. auris is now present in 17 countries, [...]
Four of the 14 operating rooms at Seattle Children’s are closed after a common mold was detected last weekend. Dozens of surgeries have been rescheduled or moved. The Aspergillus mold was found in the operating rooms after a routine check. Hospital officials don’t know when the rooms could reopen. “Patient safety is our top priority, and [...]
The United Nations (UN) today announced the creation of an emergency Ebola response coordinator, a role that officials hope will tackle the security and political challenges facing the response efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's (DRC's) 10-month-long Ebola outbreak. The UN appointed David Gressly, MBA, currently the UN's deputy special representative for peacekeeping [...]
The measles outbreak got so bad in Manila, Philippines, that San Lazaro Hospital had to set up tents in the parking lot, the courtyard and even the landing at the top of the stairs outside the pediatric ward to house patients. "This ward would only accommodate 50 patients," says Dr. Ferdinand de Guzman, the head of family [...]
With the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo now in its tenth month and the number of new cases increasing in recent weeks, the United Nations announced today measures to strengthen its response and end the outbreak. The Ebola epidemic has claimed more than 1,200 lives and the risk of spread to [...]
Verona integron-encoded metallo-β-lactamase–producing carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (VIM-CRPA) and other carbapenemase-producing organisms represent an emerging U.S. public health threat because of high levels of antibiotic resistance and the potential for rapid spread in health care facilities (1,2). During September 18–November 19, 2018, CDC received 31 reports of VIM-CRPA through the Antibiotic Resistance Laboratory Network. Six cases (19%) occurred [...]
Against a backdrop of steadily rising Ebola cases, health officials in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are bracing for more attacks, as threats continue in the big epicenters of Butembo and Katwa, and are on the rise in smaller hots spots such as Lubero and Kalunguta, the World Health Organization (WHO) said yesterday [...]
A panel of experts in antibiotic stewardship has identified steps that hospitals can take to improve their antibiotic stewardship programs (ASPs), highlighted by two emerging strategies that go beyond current guidelines. The two strategies—handshake stewardship and diagnostic stewardship—were identified by participants in a May 2018 meeting convened by the Joint Commission, a nonprofit organization that [...]
