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Biomedical subjects

L B Garcia

Publications and source records attributed to L B Garcia.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2004

Effect of penicillin on surface carbohydrate, hemolysin and morphology of Streptococcus pyogenes during and after the post-antibiotic phase.

The post-antibiotic effect (PAE) of penicillin was measured in vitro against a group A streptococcal strain by the kinetic growth method. The duration of the effect was 2.8 h. The bacterial morphology and some streptococcal products were analyzed during and after the PAE, after being exposed to penicillin in a concentration of 1xMIC for 2 h. Bacteria not previously exposed to penicillin were used as a control culture. Morphological changes and increases in the size of treated streptococci were observed by electronic microscope during the post-antibiotic phase. The post-penicillin effect on the production of cell-bound hemolysin and free hemolysin was examined using sheep red blood cells. Production of cell-bound hemolysin rose sharply, but was inhibited by the antimicrobial agent. The free lysin diminished significantly, and concomitantly with a higher production of free toxin by the treated cells. No effect was observed on the specific carbohydrate group when the antigen was tested with streptococcal group A antiserum.

Carbohydrate Metabolism↗
PubMed2001

Effectiveness of hand-cleansing agents for removing methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from contaminated hands.

OBJECTIVE: The effectiveness of hand-cleansing agents in removing a hospital strain of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from artificially contaminated hands of five volunteers was studied. DESIGN: The products used were plain liquid soap, ethyl alcohol 70% (by weight), 10% povidone-iodine liquid soap (PVP-I), and chlorhexidine gluconate (4%) detergent. The experiments were performed using a Latin square statistical design, with two 5x4 randomized blocks. The removal rates of S aureus cells from contaminated fingertips were estimated by analysis of variance, the response variable being the log10 reduction factor (RF), ie, log10 of the initial counts minus log10 of the final counts. In the first and second blocks, the fingertips of the volunteers were contaminated in mean with 3.76 log10 colony-forming units ([CFU] light-contamination hand) and 6.82 log10 CFU (heavy-contamination hand), respectively. RESULTS: In the first block, there were significant differences between treatments (P<.05). The 10% PVP-I (RF, 3.76) and 70% ethyl alcohol (RF, 3.51) had significantly higher removal rates than plain liquid soap (RF, 1.96) and 4% chlorhexidine (RF, 1.91). In the second block, 10% PVP-I (RF, 4.39) and 70% ethyl alcohol (RF, 3.27) also were significantly more effective than plain liquid soap (RF, 1.77) and 4% chlorhexidine (RF, 1.37; P<.05). Plain liquid soap was significantly more effective than chlorhexidine (4%) detergent. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that 10% PVP-I and 70% ethyl alcohol may be the most effective hand-cleansing agents for removing methicillin-resistant S aureus strain from either lightly or heavily contaminated hands.

Cross Infection↗
PubMed1998

Pay-for-performance compensation: moving beyond capitation.

Although capitation has been instrumental in lowering healthcare costs, it also has generated growing concern about quality of and access to healthcare services. Shifting to pay-for-performance compensation programs, however, allows health plans and physicians to balance economic incentives and operational outcomes, which in turn encourages improved performance and benefits providers, payers, and patients alike. A successful pay-for-performance program requires selection of appropriate performance criteria, accurate assessment of the financial impact, development of an effective means of communication between the health plan and physicians, and gradual implementation of the plan.

Capitation Fee↗
PubMed1995

Penicillin post-antibiotic effects on the biology of group A streptococci.

Microbial growth in a Todd-Hewitt broth has been followed to determine the in-vitro post-antibiotic effects of penicillin in a Lancefield group A streptococcal strain. Bacteria were exposed for 2 h at 37 degrees C to 1 x MIC of penicillin. Following antibiotic removal, inactivation with penicillinase and regrowth in a drug-free broth, the duration of the effect was found to be 2.8 h. By studying the affinity of streptococci for xylene in the post-antibiotic phase we observed that the penicillin treatment had no effect on the cell surface hydrophobicity. The ability of the same streptococci to adhere to human buccal epithelial cells was greatly reduced. Streptococci exposed to penicillin produced much more deoxyribonuclease and hyaluronidase than control bacteria.

Bacterial Adhesion↗