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Biomedical subjects

A Lepape

Publications and source records attributed to A Lepape.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

[Is there any microbiologically-based specificity of the management of catheter related infections?].

After microbiological identification, several points are to be taken into account: microbiological results, clinical signs of severity, catheter withdrawal or not. French and American recommendations are very different for coagulase negative staphylococci. Catheter withdrawal and antibiotic treatment are recommended by all the authors for coagulase positive staphylococci infections. There is no a clear guideline or studies on Enterobacteriaceae or Pseudomonas infections. Catheter removal and antifungal treatment are recommended for Candida infection.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

[Necrotizing bacterial skin and software tissue infection with muscular involvement revealing of cancer of the colon].

We report the case of a 38-year-old woman with a necrotizing bacterial skin and soft tissue infection with muscular involvement. The clinical picture was similar to a gaseous gangrene of the right lower limb with a septic shock and multiple organ failure, without predisposing factor such as trauma, and necessitating a hip amputation. The primary site of the disease was a perforated colic adenocarcinoma with peritoneal and retroperitoneal infection. The association of necrotizing skin and soft tissue infection with muscular involvement due to Clostridium septicum to a neoplasma is classical and in front of such an infection a neoplasma should be researched.

Adenocarcinoma↗

Evaluation of current practices in surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis in primary total hip prosthesis--a multicentre survey in private and public French hospitals.

Deep wound infection is a rare but dreaded postoperative complication after total hip prosthesis (THP) procedures but its incidence can be reduced by systemic antimicrobial prophylaxis. The objective of the present study was to evaluate whether antimicrobial prophylaxis for elective primary THP in patients without any history of hip infection, in orthopaedic wards, participating on a voluntary basis, in French public hospitals and private institutions, complies with published guidelines. Three types of data were collected from anaesthetic and surgical records (November 2000-January 2001) in participating hospitals: (1) administrative data on the hospitals and orthopaedic wards, (2) data on patients, (3) data on compliance of practices with five critical criteria derived from published French guidelines. These criteria concerned administration of prophylaxis, choice of antimicrobial agent, dose of first injection, timing of administration and total length of prophylaxis. Thirty institutions sent data files on 1257 THPs to the coordination centre. Compliance exceeded 80% for all criteria except one (interval between first and second injection). Cumulative compliance with the five criteria was 66.9%. Major compliance failures were an inappropriate interval between the first injection and incision, and total antimicrobial prophylaxis exceeding 48 h. Cumulative compliance was 87.9% in teaching hospitals, 61.8% in general hospitals and 67.7% in private institutions (P<1 x 10(-6)). It was slightly higher when the annual number of interventions was > or =100 (69.4 versus 62.3%; P<0.02). Although the protocol for antimicrobial prophylaxis in THP was clear and easy, one-third of practices did not conform with all five standards. Knowledge of the results by the participating institutions should encourage them to set up working groups to draft care protocols for THP and other surgical interventions, in order to improve practice and perhaps reduce costs.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Postoperative infectious complications in paediatric liver transplantation: a study of 48 transplants.

We studied, retrospectively, postoperative infectious complications following paediatric liver transplantation at a single university centre. The objectives were to characterize the epidemiology of infection and to determine the associated risk factors during the early postoperative period, either the first postoperative month or the entire duration of paediatric intensive care unit (PICU) stay. Forty-eight liver transplants were performed on 46 patients. Sixty-three infections occurred in 32 patients who underwent 34 liver transplantations (1.36 infection/patient); 47 were bacterial, 6 fungal and 10 viral. The most common sites of infection were bloodstream (36.5%) and abdomen (30%). Gram-positive bacteria (78%) predominated over gram-negative bacteria (22%). Initial analysis revealed infection risk factors to be age <1 year, body weight <10 kg, extrahepatic biliary atresia, intraoperative transfusion > 160 ml x kg(-1), mechanical ventilation > 8 days and PICU stay > 19 days. After stratified analysis, the main risk factor for infection was low body weight of the recipient.

Adolescent↗

Nosocomial pulmonary infection by antimicrobial-resistant bacteria of patients hospitalized in intensive care units: risk factors and survival.

The objectives of this study were to identify the risk factors of nosocomial pulmonary infection (NPI) in intensive care units (ICUs) associated with antimicrobial-resistant bacteria (NPI-ARB) and to compare survival after NPI-ARB with NPI due to antimicrobial-sensitive bacteria (NPI-ASB). We analysed data from a surveillance network monitoring nosocomial infections in 27 mixed ICUs in the south-east of France. NPI surveillance data were recorded for 628 patients with documented NPI. The patients were stratified into 2 groups by type of pneumonia: NPI-ASB (445 patients) vs. NPI-ARB (183 patients). Variables associated with NPI-ARB were identified++ by multivariate logistic regression. Survival was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method. A medical condition for ICU admission [odds ratio (OR) 1.98, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.35-2.91], transfer from another hospital ward [OR 1.66, 95% CI (1.14-2.42)], a colonized central venous catheter [OR 3.47, 95% CI (1.46-8.21)], a stay of [eight days [OR 1.02, 95% CI (1.01-1. 05)] and mechanical ventilation [OR 2.10, 95% CI (1.31-3.36)] were independent risk factors of NPI-ARB. Median survival was 35 days after NPI-ARB and 32 days after NPI-ASB (P=0.92). Survival after bacterial NPI was not associated with antimicrobial susceptibility.

Adult↗

[Can one use probabilistic protocols for antibiotic therapy in intensive care units?].

Due to a large spectrum, empiric antibiotics treatments participate to the increase in bacterial resistance. In order to improve its indications, the implementation of therapeutic guidelines in an ICU was studied. Empiric therapy was administered in 30% of the 178 patients receiving antimicrobial agents. Large spectrum drugs were prescribed in 26% of empiric treatments. The mean duration of empiric antibiotics administration was 3.2 days. It was concluded that it was possible to use guidelines of empiric antibiotic in an intensive care unit.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Possible involvement of multiple cytochrome P450S in fentanyl and sufentanil metabolism as opposed to alfentanil.

Fentanyl, sufentanil, and alfentanil are commonly used as opioid analgesics. Alfentanil clearance has previously been shown to exhibit an important interindividual variability, which was not observed for fentanyl or sufentanil. Differences in pharmacokinetic parameters of alfentanil have previously been associated with the wide distribution of CYP3A4, the only known hepatic cytochrome P450 monooxygenase (CYP) involved in the conversion of alfentanil to noralfentanil. Little is known about the involvement of CYP enzymes in the oxidative metabolism of fentanyl and sufentanil. Microsomes prepared from different human liver samples were compared for their abilities to metabolize fentanyl, sufentanil and alfentanil, and it was found that disappearance of the three substrates was well correlated with immunoreactive CYP3A4 contents but not with other CYPs, including CYP1A2, CYP2A6, CYP2C8, CYP2C9, CYP2D6 and CYP2E1. Specific known inhibitors of CYP enzymes gave similar results, whereas the use of recombinant human CYP enzymes expressed in yeast provided information about the possible involvement of other CYPs than CYP3A4 in the biotransformation of fentanyl and sufentanil. The possible in vivo interaction of fentanyl and sufentanil with other drugs catalyzed by CYP3A4 is also discussed.

Alfentanil↗

Detection of gram-negative bacteraemia in early sepsis by a quantitative chromogenic and kinetic endotoxin assay. The Study Group.

A kinetic chromogenic limulus test was carried out in order to investigate the possibility of a sensitive and specific detection of circulating endotoxin during the first 24 h of septic shock or severe sepsis in 76 patients. Two commercial kits, Whittaeker (W) and Chromogenix (C), were used. Blood culture was taken as a reference. At 1:10 plasma dilution (a currently used dilution in the end point limulus test) abnormal reaction kinetics were found in 13% and 41% of tests, for C and W respectively (P = 0.0008), resulting in unreliable results. Retesting plasma at a greater dilution, until the reaction kinetic was identical to calibration curve control values, gave similar results between the two kits and a better accuracy. Beyond a 0.5 EU mL-1 endotoxin level, the probability of Gram-negative bacteraemia was high (sensitivity = 0.53 and 0.47; specificity = 0.95 and 0.93 for C and W respectively). This kinetic limulus amoebocyte lysate (LAL) test may be useful in therapeutic decisions for treatment of endotoxaemia.

Aged↗

Quantitation of propofol in whole blood by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.

A gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric assay, using selected-ion monitoring (GC-MS-SIM) with thymol as internal standard, was developed for quantitating propofol, an intravenous anaesthetic. The method described is rapid and sensitive for the determination of propofol in whole blood. The sensitivity of the present method is 10 ng/ml. The recovery of propofol added to human whole blood in the concentration range 10-10,000 ng/ml ranged between 95 and 100%. A single extraction procedure was used with chloroform-ethyl acetate. The assay allowed the detection of two metabolites formed during propofol metabolism: 2,6-diisopropyl-1,4-quinone and 2,6-diisopropyl-1,4-quinol.

Anesthetics, Intravenous↗

Production of proinflammatory cytokines and cytokines involved in the TH1/TH2 balance is modulated by pentoxifylline.

The modulation of cytokine release induced by pentoxifylline (PTX) has recently been demonstrated not to be restricted solely to tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha. This prompted us to study the influence of PTX on a larger spectrum of cytokines with proinflammatory actions [TNF-alpha, interleukin-6, (IL)-6, IL-1 beta, IL-8] or with implied actions in the TH1 (IL-2, IFN-gamma)/TH2 (IL-10) balance. The IL-1RA was also explored. This work was performed using a whole-blood model in which cytokine production is measured after stimulation by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) (25 micrograms/ml) and phytohemagglutinin (PHA) (5 micrograms/ml) in 1:10 diluted whole blood. The stimulation test was performed in blood from healthy controls and from septic patients (without septic shock) in the presence or absence of PTX at 10(-6), 10(-5), 10(-4), or 10(-3) M. In controls and septic patients, at a 10(-4) M PTX concentration the production of IL-2 is strongly diminished (26-32% of the basal level), followed by diminution of IFN-gamma (30-40%). As expected, of the proinflammatory cytokines TNF was the most strongly suppressed (50% of baseline) followed by IL-1 (about 80% of basal production). Finally, IL-10 was also influenced by PTX (65% of baseline). At 10(-4) M, IL-1RA and IL-6 were unaffected by PTX. Taken altogether, our data demonstrate that PTX possesses a much broader spectrum of activity on cytokine production than was initially described, and it appears to be a potential and promising immunotherapeutic agent.

Adult↗

[Acute respiratory insufficiency in sickle cell disease].

Two cases are reported of acute respiratory failure occurring during sickling crises. In the first one, the crisis was characterised by priapism, and in the other one, by abdominal pain. The different causes of these respiratory effects are discussed: infection, fat embolism, pulmonary infarct, haemodynamic pulmonary oedema, as was probably the case in the first patient, or non haemodynamic pulmonary oedema due to sickling, as during conventional treatment of a sickling crisis (oxygen, antibiotics, blood transfusion, cytapheresis). Invasive investigations may contribute to keeping up the clinical picture, because of hypoxic sickling. The water equilibrium of these patients must be monitored with great care. Worsening of the patient's condition despite 48 h of correct treatment must lead to the search for a specific cause.

Acute Disease↗