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Biomedical subjects

C U Tuazon

Publications and source records attributed to C U Tuazon.

104 records · Page 6Linked to original sources
PubMed1975

Staphylococcal endocarditis in drug users. Clinical and microbiologic aspects.

Forty patients had staphylococcal endocarditis and a history of parenteral drug abuse. Clinical and microbiologic features of their cases were evaluated. None of our patients were known to have had preexisting valvular disease. The tricuspid valve lesions and their pulmonary complications were the predominant findings. Systemic complications in the form of meningitis, glomerulonephritis, empyema, arthritis, and nosocomial Gram-negative septicemia occurred in 33% of our patients. Of interest was the high incidence of reactions to therapy especially with methicillin sodium, which occurred in 30% of patients. Correlation of phage type and group with the antibiotic sensitivities of individual staphylococci showed that group 3 and phage types 6, 42E, 54, and 75 were much more resistant to penicillin than other groups and types. The clinical outcome did not relate to phage type and group or to antibiotic sensitivity of the organism.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Rheumatoid factor in acute bacterial endocarditis.

Sera from 55 parenteral drug abusers with endocarditis due to Staphylococcus aureus were assayed for the presence and titer of rheumatoid factor. Thirteen (24%) of the 55 patients with endocarditis had sera positive for rheumatoid factor at one point or another in their courses; only 2 (7%) of 30 noninfected drug users were found to be positive. It appeared that more severe cases, as evidenced by duration of fever after initiation of antibiotic therapy, were more likely to develop rheumatoid factor.

Acute Disease↗
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Cardiovascular and bacteremic manifestations of Campylobacter fetus infection: case report and review.

A case of bacteremia due to Campylobacter fetus subspecies fetus with concomitant pleuropericarditis in a previously healthy patient is presented. The organism is ubiquitous, but most commonly causes infection in patients with chronic underlying illnesses. The pathogenesis of human infection has not been definitively elucidated. Bacteremia is the most common clinical manifestation of this infection, although cases of thrombophlebitis, mycotic aneurysm, endocarditis, and pericarditis have also been reported. The treatment of choice for most infections is gentamicin, with chloramphenicol recommended for infection involving the central nervous system. Tetracyclines and erythromycin are alternative agents. Prolonged therapy is essential to the prevention of relapse. A high index of suspicion is necessary for the recognition of this organism in the appropriate clinical settings.

Campylobacter Infections↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Listeria monocytogenes infections in patients with AIDS: report of five cases and review.

Five patients with AIDS and Listeria monocytogenes infection (three cases of bacteremia and two of meningitis) are reviewed. Four patients had prior or concurrent gastrointestinal illness. Two patients received corticosteroids. A 7- to 21-day course of ampicillin was administered with or without a 7- to 14-day course of gentamicin. This regimen was effective, with no evidence of relapse 7-8 months after therapy was discontinued. The relative infrequency of infection with L. monocytogenes in AIDS patients is unexpected. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) appears to be essential in the inhibition of Listeria in vivo. Elevated levels of TNF in AIDS patients may be protective against listeriosis and thus help explain the low prevalence of listerial infection in this population. Nonetheless, although L. monocytogenes is an uncommon cause of illness in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus, it cannot be dismissed as a cause of undefined meningitis or sepsis.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Bacillus cereus panophthalmitis: source of the organism.

Serious infections with the "nonpathogenic" Bacillus species are increasingly being recognized, especially in drug abusers. Cases of panophthalmitis secondary to infection with Bacillus cereus, with and without associated bacteremia, have been reported. Three drug abusers with panophthalmitis seen in our hospitals during a three-year period are described, and the similar cases reported in the literature are reviewed. The syndrome is characterized by an acute onset with a rapid fulminating course that eventually leads to enucleation or evisceration of the eye. The pathogenic mechanism is unknown, but is probably related to the production of toxin (lecithinase) by B. cereus. Clindamycin appears to be the antibiotic of choice in the treatment of this infection. In order to identify a possible source of the organism, 59 samples of heroin and injection paraphernalia were cultured. Twenty cultures yielded organisms; Bacillus species were the predominant isolates. Thirty-eight percent of the isolates were identified as B. cereus. Thus, infections caused by Bacillus species in drug abusers can probably be associated with intravenous heroin abuse because heroin mixtures and injection paraphernalia are frequently contaminated with this organism.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Successful treatment of multiple brain abscesses with antibiotics alone.

Seven adults with multiple brain abscesses were successfully treated with antibiotic therapy alone at The George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, D.C., during 1976-1981. Fever, meningismus, and focal neurologic signs were common presenting features. No patient presented with coma or obtundation. Etiologic agents were identified in only three cases. Computerized tomographic (CT) scans were valuable in diagnosing and monitoring the response to therapy. Decrease in the size of the lesions was noted two to nine weeks after initiation of antibiotic therapy. In all patients, clinical signs of improvement preceded evidence of resolution of lesions on CT scan. These results indicate that, in carefully selected patients in whom surgical drainage is not feasible because of the anatomic location and/or multiplicity of lesions, a prolonged course of high-dose intravenous antibiotics alone can lead to a successful outcome.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Streptococcal endocarditis: single vs. combination antibiotic therapy and role of various species.

Forty-eight patients with 51 episodes of infective endocarditis caused by streptococci were studied in a comparison of the efficacy of single antibiotic therapy versus that of combination therapy. There was no statistical difference in terms of clinical course, toxicity, and mortality between the group given a single drug and that given combination therapy. However, one patient experienced two relapses, in both instances after high-dose penicillin therapy. The species and antibiotic susceptibilities of the infecting organisms were determined. The majority of isolates were alpha-hemolytic, with Streptococcus sanguis recovered most commonly. Streptococcus bovis and group B beta-hemolytic streptococci were the next most frequent isolates.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Relapse of staphylococcal endocarditis after clindamycin therapy.

A 25-year-old black female heroin addict presented with Staphylococcus aureus endocarditis. Because of a history of penicillin allergy, therapy was gegun with cephalothin (Keflin); lack of clinical response led to the use of clindamycin. Response was excellent. After six weeks of treatment she was discharged well, only to return six days later with recurrent endocarditis. The organism, confirmed by sensitivity and phage typing, was identifcal to that causing the inital episode. This patient illustrates the apparent failure of clindamycin to eradicate a deep-seated intravascular infection with a sensitive organism.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Case report. Staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome in adults: case report and review of the literature.

An adult drug abuser with endocarditis due to a group II Staphylococcus aureus developed the staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome (SSSS). Studies of the patient's immune function found cell-mediated immunity (CMI) to be essentially normal; thus, previous suggestions that deficient CMI is required in adults who develop SSSS seem unfounded. Pathogenesis, diagnosis, and therapy of SSSS and its differentiation from drug-induced hypersensitivity reaction are discussed in detail.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Group G streptococcus.

Three patients with serious infections due to beta hemolytic streptococci, Lancefield group G are presented. The clinical syndromes are septicemia with possible endocarditis in a patient with laryngeal carcinoma, septic arthritis in a healthy boy and endocariditis in an adult with no previous underlying valvular disease. All were treated with intravenous penicillin and recovered. The clinical and microbiologic significance of recognizing the organism is emphasized.

Arthritis, Infectious↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Rifampin in the treatment of serious staphylococcal infections.

Eight patients with serious staphylococcal infections such as endocarditis, meningitis, epidural abscess, shunt and graft infections were treated with nafcillin, cephalothin or vancomycin in combination with rifampin. In vitro antibiotic sensitivities demonstrated that the Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis were highly sensitive to rifampin with minimum inhibitory and bactericidal levels of .0078-.25 micrograms/ml. In all patients reviewed and reported, when serum bactericidal levels were measured before and after the addition of rifampin, there was a positive correlation between microbiological and clinical outcome. Thus, in selected patients with life-threatening infections caused by S. aureus and S. epidermidis rifampin should be considered an adjunctive therapy.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Role of special stains in the diagnosis of Pneumocystis carinii infection from bronchial washing specimens in patients with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

Fifty bronchial washing specimens from 36 patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) were retrospectively reviewed to assess the sensitivity of the various special stains used to diagnose Pneumocystis carinii. In 76% of the cases, the Diff-Quik stain was positive; it was the easiest and most rapid of the special stains used. The sensitivity was increased to 92%, 96% and 100%, respectively, by also doing cresyl echt violet, Grocott's Gomori methenamine silver and both the cresyl violet and Grocott stains in addition to the Diff-Quik stain. We conclude that the Diff-Quik stain is a fairly reliable and rapid screening procedure for making the diagnosis of Pneumocystis infection in bronchial washings from AIDS patients. The routine Papanicolaou stain gave less sensitive results in the smears of the washing specimens, but does give a markedly improved yield in bronchoalveolar lavage specimens.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗