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Biomedical subjects

F E Berkowitz

Publications and source records attributed to F E Berkowitz.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1988

Endotracheal aspiration for the bacteriological diagnosis of nosocomial- and measles-associated pneumonia.

Endotracheal aspirates were obtained from 51 young children for the microbiological diagnosis of pneumonia acquired in hospital or associated with measles or severe protein-energy malnutrition. The procedure proved safe and the information obtained assisted in the management of most cases. There was a fairly good correlation between the findings of Gram stain and those of culture of the aspirates, which improved when only Gram stains showing many or moderate numbers of bacteria were used. The bacteria most frequently isolated were Gram-negative enteric bacilli, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus viridans, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae, many strains of which were resistant to conventional antibiotics. The role of endotracheal aspiration in the microbiological diagnosis of pneumonia in the above-mentioned types of patients is compared with that of percutaneous lung puncture, percutaneous transtracheal aspiration and expectorated sputum.

Child↗
PubMed1987

Anaphylactic shock due to cytarabine in a leukemic child.

In a young child with acute promyelocytic leukemia, treatment with a variety of chemotherapeutic agents produced an acute anaphylactic reaction. When cytarabine was removed from the chemotherapeutic regimen, no further anaphylaxis occurred. Employing an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with cytarabine coated onto the wells in bovine serum albumin, specific IgE antibodies to this drug could be demonstrated. Similar antibodies could not be demonstrated in the serum of normal controls or of two other patients receiving cytarabine. We therefore document anaphylactic shock mediated by specific IgE antibodies to cytarabine.

Anaphylaxis↗
PubMed1987

Rapid herpes simplex virus susceptibility testing using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay performed in situ on fixed virus-infected monolayers.

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was performed directly on fixed, virus-infected cell monolayers to rapidly determine the susceptibility of herpes simplex virus to antiviral drugs. Susceptibility determinations by this method correlated well with those obtained by plaque reduction assay and avoided some of the drawbacks of other methods currently available.

Acyclovir↗
PubMed1987

Penicillin resistant pneumococcal peritonitis in nephrotic syndrome.

Two infants with nephrotic syndrome who developed penicillin resistant pneumococcal peritonitis while receiving penicillin chemoprophylaxis are reported and the problems associated with prophylaxis against pneumococcal infection discussed. It is suggested that penicillin prophylaxis may be hazardous in an environment in which penicillin resistant pneumococci are prevalent.

Female↗
PubMed1986

Characterization of rotaviruses and subgroup F adenoviruses from acute summer gastroenteritis in South Africa.

Six hundred and sixteen specimens were collected from black children hospitalised with acute gastroenteritis during the summer and autumn of 1982-1983 (October to May). Eighty-five children (13.8%) shed rotavirus and at least 40 (6.5%) shed adenovirus (Ad) type 40 or 41 belonging to subgroup F. The highest monthly prevalence of shedding subgroup F adenoviruses (10.1%) coincided with a peak in admissions in midsummer, whereas the highest monthly prevalence of shedding rotaviruses (41.9%) coincided with a peak in admissions in autumn. There were at least five genome types of rotavirus, at least three genome types of Ad40, and at least five genome types of Ad41 circulating in the Johannesburg-Soweto area during the study period. The high rate of rotavirus shedding in autumn could not be attributed to an upsurge in infections by any particular rotavirus strain.

Adenoviridae Infections↗
PubMed1985

Use of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay performed directly on fixed infected cell monolayers for evaluating drugs against varicella-zoster virus.

An in situ enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), performed directly on fixed varicella-zoster virus-infected monolayers, was used to quantitate viral antigen, and by color reduction it was used to evaluate the activity of drugs against varicella-zoster virus. Color production in the ELISA (optical density) was directly related to the dose of input virus. Antigen representing 5 to 10 plaques could be detected 3 days after infection. The ELISA was specific and reproducible, as shown by absorption and repeat experiments, respectively. A color-reduction test by ELISA was compared with the conventional plaque-reduction assay for its ability to measure the antiviral activity of acyclovir, bromovinyldeoxyuridine, trifluorothymidine, and vidarabine against four strains of varicella-zoster virus. In all cases but one the 50% inhibitory doses were lower when measured by ELISA than by the plaque-reduction assay. This in situ ELISA color reduction method had the following advantages over the conventional plaque-reduction assay: the endpoint was an objective measurement; there was less well-to-well variation; the assay was sensitive to changes in plaque size as well as plaque number; it was less labor intensive.

Acyclovir↗
PubMed1984

Bacteremia in hospitalized black South African children. A one-year study emphasizing nosocomial bacteremia and bacteremia in severely malnourished children.

During a one-year period, 315 of 5,397 children admitted to the general pediatric wards of a hospital had bacteremia. The commonest causative organisms were Streptococcus pneumoniae, Salmonella enteritidis, Hemophilus influenzae, and Escherichia coli. Most episodes of bacteremia were associated with gastroenteritis, pneumonia, or meningitis. Seventy-eight episodes occurred in children with severe protein-energy malnutrition, and 46 episodes were hospital acquired. The overall case fatality rate was 23.2%, being highest in children with severe malnutrition and in those with other underlying conditions. The high proportion of bacteremias due to S pneumoniae and S enteritidis possibly reflects infections occurring in a lower socioeconomic group living in a temperate climate in crowded conditions. The most appropriate antimicrobial therapy for children who have suspected bacteremia in association with gastroenteritis or severe malnutrition is a combination of ampicillin sodium and gentamicin sulfate.

Child↗
PubMed1984

Genome variants of human adenovirus 40 (subgroup F).

Twenty-six strains of faecal adenovirus from three continents (two from Europe, 16 from South Africa, and eight from Canada) were typed as Ad40 by restriction enzyme analysis of the DNA using Sma I. The DNA of the strains was further compared by digestion with six other enzymes, namely Bam HI, Eco RI, Bgl I, Xho I, Sst I, and Hind III. At least two different restriction profiles were found to exist for each enzyme. Nineteen of the 26 strains studied had the same combination of profiles for all the enzymes, within the limits of resolution of the technique. This genome type was detected from all three continents and included the Finnish reference strain Hovi-X. The other seven strains were genome variants, representing five other genome types. Three genome types were detected only in South African specimens, whereas one genome type was detected in single specimens from both South Africa and Canada. Strain Dugan from Holland, indistinguishable from other Ad40 strains in neutralization tests using polyclonal antibody preparations [de Jong et al, 1983], deviated from the common Hovi-X-like genome on digestion of the DNA with any of the enzymes except Sma I.

Adenoviridae Infections↗
PubMed1983

Serratia marcescens endocarditis treated with ceftazidime. A case report.

A 14-year-old Black girl developed Serratia marcescens endocarditis following a mitral valve repair. This was refractory to treatment with several courses of antibiotics and valve replacement, and was eventually cured after a second valve replacement and treatment with ceftazidime (GR 20263 Glaxo), a new cephalosporin derivative.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

Infections in children with severe protein-energy malnutrition.

The infections occurring in 68 black children admitted to hospital with kwashiorkor, marasmus or marasmic-kwashiorkor were studied prospectively. Fifteen episodes of bacteraemia, most commonly due to Gram-negative enteric bacilli, occurred in 13 children (19%), six of these episodes being nosocomial. Urinary tract infection, diagnosed on suprapubic urine specimens and all due to Escherichia coli, occurred in five out of 16 cases (31%). In the 48 cases admitted with gastro-enteritis and 18 with pneumonia, a causative organism was found in the minority. Fifteen episodes of nosocomial infection occurred in 14 children (20.6%), of whom four died. Of the 14 deaths, eight were associated with bacteraemia. Skin infections were due mainly to staphylococci and streptococci. Infections in severely malnourished children appear to be due largely to the same microorganisms as cause infection in well-nourished children of the same community. Nosocomial infections pose a major threat to these children.

Bacterial Infections↗
PubMed1983

Rotavirus infection in Black and White newborns.

Rotavirus infection in asymptomatic Black and White newborns in maternity hospitals was studied by electron microscopy of stools. None of the 37 White and 30 (49%) of the 61 Black babies excreted rotavirus (P less than 0.0005). The high incidence of neonatal infection in Blacks, who have a low incidence of rotavirus diarrhea in infancy, suggests that neonatal infection might result in immunity.

Black or African American↗
PubMed1983

Perspectives on acute gastroenteritis in black South African infants.

In developing countries, gastroenteritis is the major cause of infant mortality; however, owing to inadequate laboratory facilities and personnel, little is known about the status of enteropathogenic agents, especially rotavirus. Disease patterns differ between developed and developing communities, and rotavirus plays a markedly lesser role in the overall etiology of the disease in developing than in developed countries--where it is one of the major etiological agents. This may be due to extensive exposure to rotavirus in developing communities during and soon after the neonatal period, causing inapparent or mild clinical infection that could result in immunity during the significant target age of 6 to 24 months. This immunity may have important implications for immunization. However, immunoprophylaxis should be secondary to an improvement in socioeconomic conditions. The dramatic reduction in incidence and mortality of gastroenteritis seen in the Black urban populations of Johannesburg and Cape Town was a direct result of improvements in nutrition, housing, sanitation, etc.

Black or African American↗
PubMed1982

Mollaret's meningitis associated with cerebrospinal fluid leak.

Mollaret's meningitis or the benign recurrent meningitis syndrome is a rare disorder not previously described in Africa. The syndrome has a characteristic clinical presentation with spinal fluid pleocytosis, often with unusual 'epithelial' cells. With contemporary techniques no causative organism has been incriminated. The aetiology remains speculative, but we report on a patient found to have a cerebrospinal fluid leak, which may represent a factor in the pathogenesis of this disorder.

Cerebrospinal Fluid Rhinorrhea↗
PubMed1982

Congo-Crimean haemorrhagic fever in South Africa. Report of a fatal case in the Transvaal.

A 13-year-old boy, after having spent a week at a camp in a nature reserve in the western Transvaal, developed an acute illness of sudden onset characterized by chills, severe headache, muscle pains and high fever. On the 3rd day he developed a haemorrhagic state with profuse bleeding from the gastro-intestinal tract and other mucous membranes and petechial haemorrhages into the skin, from which he died on the 6th day after onset of the illness. A tick, identified as a species of Hyalomma, was found attached to his scalp. The provisional clinical diagnosis of Congo virus fever was confirmed in the laboratory by the isolation of the virus in newborn mice inoculated with the patient's blood. This is the first incrimination of Congo virus as the cause of a fatal case of haemorrhagic fever in South Africa, although it is known to occur in several countries in the tropical region of Africa and in south-eastern Europe and Asia.

Adolescent↗