Polymicrobial etiology as a prognostic factor for empyema in addition to the renal, age, purulence, infection source, and dietary factors score

BACKGROUND

Empyema is an important and serious disease with high morbidity and mortality worldwide. However, the bacteriology and prognostic factors of empyema remain poorly understood, and data on the relationships among these parameters are scant.

METHODS

We retrospectively analyzed a prospectively collected database of patients with empyema admitted to Kurashiki Central Hospital, Japan, between May 2007 and September 2015. Only patients who had positive results on pleural fluid bacterial culture were included. We collected patient characteristics, bacteriology findings, treatments, and outcomes, and we assessed the prognostic factors for in-hospital mortality.

RESULTS

We included 71 patients in this study. The most commonly isolated bacteria were members of the Streptococcus anginosus group (37%), followed by anaerobes (30%). In-hospital mortality was 11%. On multivariate analysis, polymicrobial empyema (odds ratio [OR], 8.25; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.08-62.90) and RAPID (renal, age, purulence, infection source, and dietary factors) score (OR, 6.89; 95% CI, 1.73-27.40) were significant risk factors for in-hospital mortality. The most common etiology of polymicrobial empyema was a combination of the members of the S. anginosus group and anaerobes, but no relationship was observed between the combination of microorganisms and outcomes. Although no significant difference was observed in treatment between the survivor and non-survivor groups, all patients who underwent surgery survived.

CONCLUSIONS

Members of the S. anginosus group and anaerobes were frequent pathogens in empyema, and polymicrobial etiology was independently associated with mortality in addition to the RAPID score. Surgery may be one option for preventing mortality.

Prevention of Evisceration or Enucleation in Endogenous Bacterial Panophthalmitis with No Light Perception and Scleral Abscess

Panophthalmitis is the most extensive ocular involvement in endophthalmitis with inflammation in periocular tissues. Severe inflammation of the anterior and posterior segments is frequently accompanied by corneal opacity, scleral abscess, and perforation or rupture. Enucleation or evisceration was the only remaining viable treatment option when all options to salvage the eye had been exhausted. The purpose of this retrospective study is to examine the outcomes of patients with endogenous bacterial panophthalmitis, no light perception and scleral abscess who were treated with multiple intravitreal and periocular injections of antibiotics and dexamethasone. Evaluation included spreading of infection to contiguous or remote sites, following evisceration or enucleation, and sympathetic ophthalmia. Eighteen patients were diagnosed with EBP, with liver abscesses in eight patients, retroperitoneal infection in four, pneumonia in two, infective endocarditis in one, cellulitis in one, drug abuse in one, and mycotic pseudoaneurysm in one. Culture results were positive for Klebsiella pneumoniae in 12 patients, Streptococcus spp. in three, Pseudomonas aeruginosa in one, Escherichia coli in one, and Staphylococcus aureus in one. The average number of periocular injections was 2.2, and the average number of intravitreal injections was 5.8. No eye required evisceration or enucleation and developed the spreading of infection to contiguous or remote sites during the follow-up. No sympathetic ophthalmia was observed in the fellow eye of all patients. Prevention of evisceration or enucleation in patients with EBP, NLP and scleral abscess can be achieved by multiple intravitreal and periocular injections of antibiotics and dexamethasone.

Experimental Abscess Formation Caused by Human Dental Plaque

Human dental plaque consists of a wide variety of microorganisms, some of which are believed to cause systemic infections, including abscesses, at various sites in the body. To confirm this hypothesis experimentally, we examined the abscess-forming ability of native dental plaque in mice, the microbial features of the infectious locus produced by the plaque, and the anti-phagocytic property of microbial isolates. Aliquots of a suspension of supragingival dental plaque containing 6 x 10(6) colony-forming unit of bacteria were injected subcutaneously into the dorsa of mice. Abscess formation was induced in 76 of 85 mice using ten different plaque samples. Thirteen microorganisms were isolated from pus samples aspirated from abscess lesions. The microbial composition of pus, examined in 17 of 76 abscesses, was very simple compared to that of the plaque sample that had induced the abscess. The majority of the isolates belonged to the Streptococcus anginosus group, normally a minor component of plaque samples. S. anginosus was the most frequently detected organism and the most prevalent in seven abscesses, and Streptococcus intermedius and Streptococcus constellatus were predominant in one and three abscess samples, respectively. Each isolate of S. anginosus group produced abscesses in mice, and heat-treated supragingival dental plaque influenced the abscess-forming ability of S. anginosus isolate. These isolates possessed a high antiphagocytic capacity against human polymorphonuclear leukocytes. Our results suggest that human supragingival dental plaque itself is a source of the infectious pathogens that cause abscess formation.

Streptococcus anginosus group disseminated infection: case report and review of literature

Streptococcus anginosus group is widely known for its ability to cause invasive pyogenic infections. There are very few reports of disseminated infections sustained by members of this streptococcal group. We report a case of a highly disseminated infection and analyse previous literature reports. Disseminated pyogenic infection has been defined as an infection affecting two or more of the following organs/systems: central nervous system, lung, liver and spleen. We performed a PubMed search using the terms: S. milleri, S. anginosus, brain abscess, pulmonary abscess, hepatic abscess, spleen abscess. We reviewed 12 case reports including the one presented in this paper. Underlying conditions such as dental infections, malignancy, gastrointestinal and respiratory tract disease accounted for 42% of cases. No definite endocarditis was encountered, even though positive blood cultures were found in 67% of patients. Concomitant brain-liver, brain-lung and brain-spleen involvement occurred in 50%, 42% and 8% of cases respectively. Ninety-one percent (91%) of patients were treated with β-lactams, and surgical procedures were performed in 67% of patients. Infections caused by S. anginosus group members are satisfactorily treated with penicillin G and cephalosporins. It is very important to associate surgery to antimicrobial chemotherapy in order to achieve a full or nearly full clinical recovery.

Bacterial Profile and Burden of Periodontal Infection in Subjects With a Diagnosis of Acute Coronary Syndrome

BACKGROUND

Periodontitis has been identified as a potential risk factor in cardiovascular diseases. It is possible that the stimulation of host responses to oral infections may result in vascular damage and the inducement of blood clotting. The aim of this study was to assess the role of periodontal infection and bacterial burden as an explanatory variable to the activation of the inflammatory process leading to acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

METHODS

A total of 161 consecutive surviving cases admitted with a diagnosis of ACS and 161 control subjects, matched with cases according to their gender, socioeconomic level, and smoking status, were studied. Serum white blood cell (WBC) counts, high- and low-density lipoprotein (HDL/LDL) levels, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsC-rp) levels, and clinical periodontal routine parameters were studied. The subgingival pathogens were assayed by the checkerboard DNA-DNA hybridization method.

RESULTS

Total oral bacterial load was higher in the subjects with ACS (mean difference: 17.4x10(5); SD: 10.8; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 4.2 to 17.4; P<0.001), and significant for 26 of 40 species including Porphyromonas gingivalis, Tannerella forsythensis, and Treponema denticola. Serum WBC counts, hsC-rp levels, Streptococcus intermedius, and Streptococcus sanguis, were explanatory factors to acute coronary syndrome status (Nagelkerke r2=0.49).

CONCLUSION

The oral bacterial load of S. intermedius, S. sanguis, Streptococcus anginosus, T. forsythensis, T. denticola, and P. gingivalis may be concomitant risk factors in the development of ACS.

In vitro activity of sitafloxacin compared with several fluoroquinolones against Streptococcus anginosus and Streptococcus constellatus

The in vitro activities of sitafloxacin and seven other fluoroquinolones a (ciprofloxacin, tosufloxacin, sparfloxacin, levofloxacin, T-3811ME, moxifloxacin and trovafloxacin) were examined by the microdilution method against 79 clinically isolated 'Streptococcus milleri' group (SMG) microorganisms. No statistically significant differences were found between the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC(50) and MIC(90)) against Streptococcus anginosus and Streptococcus constellatus. Sitafloxacin was the most active agent of the eight fluoroquinolones tested against SMG, with a MIC(90) of 0.06 microg/mL, which was 8 times more active than ciprofloxacin and 16 times more active than levofloxacin. Although none of the SMG strains showed high resistance to any of the fluoroquinolones tested, three agents (trovafloxacin, sitafloxacin and T-3811ME) had low MICs against 23 SMG strains against which levofloxacin had a MIC> 1 microg/mL. In conclusion, several fluoroquinolones have low MICs against SMG, but sitafloxacin has the lowest.

Invasive group B streptococcal disease in infants: a 19-year nationwide study. Serotype distribution, incidence and recurrent infection

During the period 1984-2002, 472 cases of invasive group B streptococcal (GBS) disease in infants aged 0-90 days in Denmark were registered. The overall incidence was 0.4/1000 live births. Most infants (73%) had early-onset GBS infection with 53% registered within the first day. Serotype III predominated (59%) with other serotypes as follows: Ia (16%), Ib (8%), NT (7%), II (6%), other serotypes (5%). Recurrence of GBS infection was registered in six infants, and the interval with no antibiotic therapy varied from 2 to 39 days. The serotypes of the isolates obtained from first and second episodes were identical (serotype III in five, and serotype Ia in one infant). Paired isolates were indistinguishable by PFGE and antibiotic susceptibility testing. Invasive GBS infections in infants are still a problem in Denmark, and recurrent infections are registered in 1% of these infants.

Frequent and preferential infection of Treponema denticola, Streptococcus mitis, and Streptococcus anginosus in esophageal cancers

Multiple cancers frequently occur in the upper digestive tract. One possible explanation is that specific bacterial infection stimulates the normal epithelium to initiate inflammation and/or promotes carcinogenesis. This study was undertaken to determine which bacterial species is predominantly associated with esophageal cancer. We examined the bacterial diversity in this type of cancer and in the saliva from healthy people by using a culture-independent molecular method. Here we report the preferential and frequent infection of the oral periodontopathic spirochete Treponema denticola (T. denticola), Streptococcus mitis (S. mitis), and Streptococus anginosus (S. anginosus) in esophageal cancer from different regions of the world, and we also describe the induction of inflammatory cytokines by infection of S. anginosus and S. mitis. Our present data suggest that these three bacteria could have significant roles in the carcinogenic process of many cases of esophageal cancer by causing inflammation and by promoting the carcinogenic process, and that eradication of these three bacteria may decrease the risk of recurrence.

[Phenotypical characterization of some strains of anginosus streptococci isolated from superficial face and neck abscesses]

The aim of the present study was to identify at species level and to characterize the strains of streptococci belonging to anginosus group isolated from 30 pus samples collected from patients with abscesses of fascial spaces of the face or neck. The identification of facultatively anaerobic Gram-positive cocci in chains at genus level was made by conventional diagnosis methods and at species level by the help of Rapid ID 32 STREP system. The cultural, biochemical and antigenic (limited at Lancefield Group identification by Slidex Strepto-Kit) characterization was performed in the mean time with the species identification. The anginosus streptococcal strains were isolated either in association with other bacteria or in pure culture and S. anginosus isolates clearly predominated. As expected, the anginosus streptococcal strains were found to be heterogeneous regarding the cultural, biochemical and antigenic features.