Thyroid function and risk of bloodstream infections: Results from the Norwegian prospective population-based HUNT Study

Clinical Application of a Multiplex Droplet Digital PCR in the Rapid Diagnosis of Children with Suspected Bloodstream Infections

Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) recently has been shown to be a potential diagnostic tool for adults with bloodstream infections (BSIs); however, its application in children remains obscure. In this study, 76 blood samples of children with suspected BSIs were synchronously detected by traditional blood cultures (BCs) and ddPCRs. Our team validated the diagnostic performance of ddPCR including sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values. The 76 pediatric patients from the hematology department (67.1%), the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU, 27.6%), and other departments (5.2%) were enrolled. The positive rate of ddPCR results was 47.9%, whereas that for BC was 6.6%. In addition, the time consumption of ddPCR was shorter, only for 4.7 ± 0.9 h, in comparison with the detection timing of BC (76.7 ± 10.4 h, p < 0.01). The levels of agreement and disagreement between BC and ddPCR were 96.1% and 4.2%, and the negative agreement reached 95.6%. The sensitivity of ddPCR was 100%, with corresponding specificities ranging from 95.3 to 100.0%. In addition, a total of nine viruses were identified by ddPCR. In China, the multiplexed ddPCR first could be a tool for the rapid and accurate diagnosis of children with suspected BSIs and can be an early indicator of the possibility of viraemia in children with immunosuppression.

Insomnia symptoms and risk of bloodstream infections: prospective data from the prospective population-based Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT), Norway

Previous research suggests decreased immune function and increased risk of infections in individuals with insomnia. We examined the effect of insomnia symptoms on risk of bloodstream infections (BSIs) and BSI-related mortality in a population-based prospective study. A total of 53,536 participants in the second Norwegian Nord-Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT2) (1995-97) were linked to prospective data on clinically relevant BSIs until 2011. In Cox regression, we estimated hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for a first-time BSI and for BSI-related mortality (BSI registered ≤30 days prior to death) associated with insomnia symptoms. Compared with participants who reported "no symptoms", participants reporting having "difficulty initiating sleep" (DIS) often/almost every night had a HR for a first-time BSI of 1.14 (95% CI 0.96-1.34). Participants reporting "difficulties maintaining sleep" (DMS) often/almost every night had a HR of 1.19 (95% CI 1.01-1.40), whereas those having a feeling of "non-restorative sleep" once a week or more had a HR of 1.23 (95% CI 1.04-1.46). Participants frequently experiencing all three of the above symptoms had a HR of 1.39 (1.04-1.87), whilst those who had both DIS and DMS had a HR of 1.15 (0.93-1.41) and being troubled by insomnia symptoms to a degree that affected work performance was associated with a HR of 1.41 (95% CI 1.08-1.84). The HRs for BSI-related mortality suggest an increased risk with increasing insomnia symptoms, but the CIs are wide and inconclusive. We found that frequent insomnia symptoms and insomnia symptoms that affected work performance were associated with a weak positive increased risk of BSI.