Antibiotics

Emily Heil, PharmD, BCPS-AQ ID, assistant professor at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, explains how the FDA Guidance 213 and the Veterinary Feed Directive will change the use of antibiotics for growth promotion purposes in the United States.

While antibiotics serve a meaningful purpose in treating infections, appropriate use of these agents is needed in order to minimize adverse events.

Researchers from the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit have found that a 5-minute CRP test can assist in the ongoing fight against antibiotic resistance by reducing antibiotic misuse for respiratory infections.

Thomas Sandora, MD, MPH, hospital epidemiologist at Boston Children’s Hospital, discusses some up and coming pediatric healthcare associated infection prevention strategies.

A new treatment has been discovered by researchers at The University of Sheffield that can be used to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria, such as MRSA, by using proteins called tetraspanins.

In a recent study, researchers identified three key factors that increase the risk for patient-to-patient transmission of carbapenemase-producing carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriacecae (CP-CRE).

The IDSA and ATS have updated the Clinical Practice Guidelines for HAP & VAP for the first time since 2005 to recommend that each hospital generate antibiograms and reduce the use of antibiotics in treatment regiments.

Researchers have made an important breakthrough in efforts to develop a test to help clinicians determine whether a patient has a microbial infection or sterile trauma, a new study shows.

A new study conducted by Andreas Peschel, PhD, and colleagues at the University of Tuebingen in Germany, has shown that lugdunin, a bacteria naturally produced by the human body, can be used as an antibiotic that can eliminate Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

The belief that patients may face increased risks of complications following reduced antibiotic use after experiencing self-limiting respiratory tract infections (RTIs) may not be well-founded.

Prof. Andrea Endimiani, MD, PhD, from the Institute of Infectious Diseases at the University of Bern, Switzerland, discusses how practitioners should test for colistin-resistant pathogens.

One month before the summer Olympics are set to be begin in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil amid the threat of the Zika virus, another health threat has been identified in the city.

Kirk Hevener, PharmD, PhD, explains the importance of narrow-spectrum antibacterial targets.

Romney Humphries, PhD, D(ABMM), discusses new technologies to detect antimicrobial susceptibility and resistance that are currently under production.

Andrew Chasteen from Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc, explains Morphokinetic Cellular Analysis (MCA) and how it differs from other analyses.

Prof. Andrea Endimiani, MD, PhD, from the Institute of Infectious Diseases at the University of Bern, Switzerland, explains which pathogens are most affected by the colistin resistant mcr-1 gene.

John Mohr, PharmD, president and founder of Medical Affairs Strategic Solutions, LLC, explains the current state of the antimicrobial pipeline.

Monica Mahoney, PharmD, BCPS-AQ ID, clinical pharmacy coordinator of infectious diseases at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, explains the antimicrobial considerations that are specific to the solid organ transplant population.

Emily Heil, PharmD, BCPS-AQ ID, from the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, discusses the concerns of antibiotic use in agriculture.

Jason C. Gallagher, PharmD, president, Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists, explains if we know how the case of mcr-1 E. coli superbug was contracted.

New research suggests that modernized phages therapy may be useful in extending the lifespan of currently available antibiotics and reducing the incidence of antibiotic-resistant infections.

Marion A. Kainer, MD, MPH, FRACP, FSHEA, Director of Healthcare Associated Infection and Antimicrobial Resistance Program, Tennessee Department of Health, discusses some of the key points to aid in the fight against healthcare associated infections, nationwide.

Jason C. Gallagher, PharmD, President, Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists describes the recent case of an antibiotic resistant “superbug” in Pennsylvania.

With reports in the mainstream media prophesizing doom with regard to the issue of antimicrobial resistance, a committee formed by the British government has released a report designed to properly contextualize the crisis and develop recommendations for addressing it.

A recent review article on the status of vaccines in development for healthcare associated infections (HAIs) provides both an in-depth discussion of their urgent need, as well as their potential for success.

Researchers from the department of pathology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston developed and validated a high-throughput screen (HTS) that could detect antimicrobial agents with the ability to restore carbapenem susceptibility to resistant strains, as well as those that target CRE directly.

For patients who suffer from certain uncomplicated infections such as, sinusitis, bronchitis, and uncomplicated urinary tract infections, the health risks associated with fluoroquinolone far outweigh the benefits.

Older antibiotic agents show decreased potency due to overuse and the subsequent emergence of drug-resistant bacteria. This antimicrobial resistance has been predicted to have enormous consequences for human health, necessitating the development of new agents in the ongoing war between humans and the germs that attack us.

Antibiotic-resistant pathogens continue to make the management of some bacterial infections a significant clinical challenge.

Adding to the troubling data worldwide on antibiotic resistance, researchers have found that even trace concentrations of antibiotics, such as those found in sewage, are sufficient for bacteria to maintain resistance to most broad-spectrum agents.