Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

Petri Ruutu

Publications and source records attributed to Petri Ruutu.

11 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Central nervous system infection is an important cause of death in underfives hospitalised with World Health Organization (WHO) defined severe and very severe pneumonia.

Over 6 years, 1667 children aged 2-59 months admitted for pneumonia [1287 severe and 380 very severe] were studied. The case fatality rate (CFR) in children with severe pneumonia was 2.1% and 14.3% with CNS infection, with very severe pneumonia the CFR was 18.9%, 10.4% in those with hypoxemia and 43.6% with CNS infection. High CFRs were associated with CNS infection and inability to drink/cyanosis. The appropriate management of children with very severe pneumonia should include cerebrospinal fluid examination, oxygen monitoring and possibly ventilated support, suggesting that these are minimal standards of care at the district hospital.

Age Factors↗
PubMed2004

Nosocomial bloodstream infections due to viridans streptococci in haematological and non-haematological patients: species distribution and antimicrobial resistance.

OBJECTIVES: We studied the species distribution and antimicrobial susceptibility of viridans streptococci (VS) isolates causing nosocomial bloodstream infections (BSIs) in Finnish hospitals. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Patients with nosocomial BSIs due to VS were identified through a hospital-wide prospective laboratory-based surveillance in two university and two regional hospitals during September 1998-August 2001. Isolates of VS were sent to the reference laboratory for species confirmation and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. RESULTS: A total of 2038 nosocomial BSIs were identified; 108 (5%) of the BSIs were caused by VS. Of the VS BSIs, 66% were in patients with a haematological malignancy, 14% in patients with a solid tumour and 18% in patients who had undergone surgery preceding the infection. The most common species group identified was Streptococcus mitis (82%). High-level penicillin resistance (> or = 4 mg/L) and cefotaxime resistance (> or = 4mg/L) were present in 5% and 4% of isolates, respectively; both were detected only in haematological patients. However, in non-haematological patients, resistance to erythromycin (17%), and reduced susceptibility to levofloxacin (14%) and penicillin (19%) were common. CONCLUSIONS: The resistance problems in VS are not limited to haematological patients. These findings may have significant clinical implications in the choice of both empirical antibiotic and antimicrobial prophylaxis regimens.

Anti-Infective Agents↗
PubMed2004

A widespread outbreak of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis O:3 infection from iceberg lettuce.

BACKGROUND: The vehicles and sources of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis infection are unknown. In Finland, clinical microbiology laboratories routinely report Y. pseudotuberculosis isolations and submit isolates for serotype analysis. In October 1998, the number of serotype O:3 infections increased markedly. METHODS: Case patients with culture-confirmed Y. pseudotuberculosis O:3 infection were identified by use of laboratory-based surveillance. We conducted a population-based case-control study. Healthy community control subjects were matched by age, sex, and postal code. Isolates were subtyped by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). RESULTS: Nationwide, 47 case patients were identified (age range, 2-77 years; median, 19 years). One patient with bacteremia died; 5 underwent appendectomies. We enrolled 38 case patients and 76 control subjects in the case-control study. Seventy-one percent of case patients and 42% of control subjects reported having eaten iceberg lettuce (matched odds ratio, 3.8; 95% confidence interval, 1.3-9.4); a dose-response relationship was found for increasing frequency of consumption. Of the 27 isolates obtained from case patients and tested in the analysis, all had indistinguishable PFGE patterns. Four lunch cafeterias that had served iceberg lettuce were associated with clusters of case patients. The lettuce was traced back to originating farms. CONCLUSIONS: Iceberg lettuce was implicated as the vehicle of a widespread foodborne Y. pseudotuberculosis outbreak. Ongoing laboratory-based surveillance and serotype analysis were essential in the rapid detection of infection. Cases of yersiniosis, which appear to be sporadic, may be part of unrecognized outbreaks caused by contaminated fresh produce.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2004

Domestically acquired Campylobacter infections in Finland.

Campylobacter jejuni isolates (n = 533) from domestic cases diagnosed in Finland during a 3-month peak period were studied. The highest rate was observed among those 70-74 years of age. Domestic C. jejuni isolates were especially frequent in the eastern districts. Six serotypes covered 61% of all C. jejuni isolates.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Correlation between the severity of infectious diseases in children and the ratio of serum amyloid A protein and C-reactive protein.

The aim of this study was to assess whether measurements of serum amyloid A protein (SAA) could provide additional information on the severity of acute infection beyond that obtained from C-reactive protein (CRP) assays. The SAA and CRP concentrations were analysed from the sera of 334 children hospitalized for suspected pneumonia, meningitis or sepsis. SAA significantly correlated with CRP (r = 0.682, p < 0.001) and did not alone provide any further clinically useful information. By contrast, the median ratio (and interquartile range) of SAA to CRP varied significantly between clinical conditions of different severity and was significantly lower in the patients who died [1.9 (0.0-8.9)] than in those who survived [6.8 (3.2-13.6)] (p = 0.001).

Acute Disease↗
PubMed2003

Nationwide increase of Chlamydia trachomatis infection in Finland: highest rise among adolescent women and men.

BACKGROUND: Since 1995, the incidence of Chlamydia trachomatis infection has been increasing in Finland, although there have been no major changes in public sexually transmitted disease (STD) services or screening practice. OBJECTIVES: The objective was to study whether the change in C. trachomatis incidence is significant and to identify specific risk groups. METHODS: The incidence rates for all C. trachomatis cases notified by laboratories to the National Infectious Disease Register (NIDR) in Finland in 1995-2000 were calculated by gender, age, and domicile. Data from a sentinel STD surveillance network was used to analyze changes of risk-taking behavior in age groups with the highest C. trachomatis rates. RESULTS: During the 6-year study period, laboratory surveillance data documented an increase in the incidence rate from 23.4 per 10,000 to 29.2 per 10,000. The increase was most evident among people living in nonurban densely populated areas. Highest increase, 1.37-fold (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.29-1.46) in women and 1.69-fold (CI, 1.47-1.92) in men, occurred in the youngest age group (10-19 years old). In 2000, more women, but not men, in the age group of 10-29 years reported 5 or more annual sex partners (18.8%; CI, 16.3-21.6) than in 1995 (8.3%; CI, 5.7-11.5). CONCLUSION: National surveillance of C. trachomatis infection based on laboratory notification documented increasing incidence rates, especially among adolescents and young people. This risk group should be a target for screening and educational programs to control the epidemic of C. trachomatis infections.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Characterization of Finnish Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates by spoligotyping.

The molecular epidemiology of tuberculosis (TB) in Finland was studied by spoligotyping 380 Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates. The isolates were obtained during a 1-year study period from July 2000 to June 2001 and represented 90% of new M. tuberculosis findings by culture in the whole country during the study period. The spoligotyping results were compared to the World Spoligotyping Database of the Institut Pasteur de Guadeloupe, which contains data from >14,000 M. tuberculosis isolates obtained worldwide. A total of 138 different spoligotypes were identified among the 380 M. tuberculosis isolates. Thirty-eight (10%) isolates had unique spoligotypes, while 342 (90%) isolates belonged to 100 shared types. The four most common spoligotypes caused approximately one-third of the Finnish TB cases. Forty-seven of the 138 (34.1%) spoligotypes and 61 (16.1%) of the 380 M. tuberculosis isolates had spoligotypes that had not been previously reported. Only four (1.1%) patients were infected with an isolate belonging to the Beijing genotype. The characterization of Finnish M. tuberculosis isolates by spoligotyping shows that ubiquitous spoligotypes were common, but many spoligotypes specific to Finland were also found. However, Beijing family isolates were rarely encountered, although this spoligotype is predominant in our eastern and southern neighbors.

Bacterial Typing Techniques↗
PubMed2003

Candidemia in Finland, 1995-1999.

We analyzed laboratory-based surveillance candidemia data from the National Infectious Disease Register in Finland and reviewed cases of candidemia from one tertiary-care hospital from 1995 to 1999. A total of 479 candidemia cases were reported to the Register. The annual incidence rose from 1.7 per 100,000 population in 1995 to 2.2 in 1999. Species other than Candida albicans accounted for 30% of cases without change in the proportion. A total of 79 cases of candidemia were identified at the hospital; the rate varied from 0.03 to 0.05 per 1,000 patient-days by year. Predisposing factors included indwelling catheters (81%), gastrointestinal surgery (27%), hematologic malignancy (25%), other types of surgery (21%), and solid malignancies (20%). Crude 7-day and 30-day case-fatality ratios were 15% and 35%, respectively. The rate of candidemia increased in Finland but is still substantially lower than in the United States. No shift to non-C. albicans species could be detected.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Lactobacillus bacteremia during a rapid increase in probiotic use of Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG in Finland.

Lactobacilli supposedly have low pathogenicity; they are seldom detected in blood culture. Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG, which originates indigenously in the human intestine, became available for use as a probiotic in 1990 in Finland. We evaluated the possible effects of the increased probiotic use of L. rhamnosus GG on the occurrence of bacteremia due to lactobacilli. Lactobacilli were isolated in 0.02% of all blood cultures and 0.2% of all blood cultures with positive results in Helsinki University Central Hospital and in Finland as a whole, and no trends were seen that suggested an increase in Lactobacillus bacteremia. The average incidence was 0.3 cases/100,000 inhabitants/year in 1995-2000 in Finland. Identification to the species level was done for 66 cases of Lactobacillus bacteremia, and 48 isolates were confirmed to be Lactobacillus strains. Twenty-six of these strains were L. rhamnosus, and 11 isolates were identical to L. rhamnosus GG. The results indicate that increased probiotic use of L. rhamnosus GG has not led to an increase in Lactobacillus bacteremia.

Bacteremia↗