Author Archives: mdjkf
Chronic venous or dependency wound golden rules
Guest posting from Dr Nicole Organ, Vascular Surgeon, HNE LHD Golden rules Maintain lower limb skin integrity – trauma avoidance, protective routine skin care Treat acute lower limb wounds/skin tears aggressively to prevent chronicity – early use of wound compression Address modifiable risk factors – superficial venous disease, obesity, sedentary lifestyle, arterial disease Use simple […]
ACIPC presentation – VRE control update Nov 2021
How can we control VRE? Ferguson ACIPC 2021 Invited presentation to ACIPC Conference – the top 3 horizontal (standard) controls are: Hand hygiene by healthcare staff Environmental controls – REACH trial Antimicrobial stewardship – target piperacillin+tazobactam and ceftriaxone to reduce usage below 30 DDD/1000 patient-days. References https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2019/211/3/reduced-vre-and-mrsa-colonisation-and-infection-following-sustained-reduction Ferguson- VRE in hospitals – 2014 monograph https://www.publish.csiro.au/ma/MA14011 […]
Preoperative nasal screening for Staph. aureus carriage and load reduction (HNE LHD)
Indications for preoperative screening for Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA or MRSA) nasal carriage and preoperative staphylococcal load reduction (HNE LHD): Open cardiac and valve procedures Shoulder, hip or knee joint total arthroplasties: primary or revision procedures Aortic work (stent and open) and all lower limb open surgery for vascular reconstructions (bypass, endarterectomy). Iliac stents (as they […]
Prosthetic joint surgery – HNE Health infection prevention protocols
Updated 25/1/24 Preoperative evaluation and perioperative care Screen for MSSA or MRSA carriage with a single nose swab culture (repeat if surgery delayed > 1 month) Carriers of MSSA or MRSA have staphylococcal load reduction performed in the week prior to surgery Preoperative urine cultures are NOT indicated Shower on day of surgery (normal soap) […]
Top 10 Infectious Diseases papers 2020 from Prof Josh Davis
Originally posted on Microbiology and Infectious Diseases postgraduate teaching (PRIDA):
Guest posting from Josh Davis, Infectious Diseases Physician, John Hunter Hospital, Newcastle, NSW. Thanks Josh! He has selected the Top ID papers of 2020 Davis based on: Deal with diagnosis or Rx of infectious diseases (COVID excluded) Relevant to clinical practice Practice-changing, paradigm-shifting, or dogma-challenging
REVIVE Antimicrobial Encyclopaedia
Originally posted on Microbiology and Infectious Diseases postgraduate teaching (PRIDA):
The Global Antibiotic Research & Development Partnership (GARDP) has announced the launch of their new resource, the Encyclopaedia – REVIVE (gardp.org). A great new resource! This resource includes definitions of terms from the field of antimicrobials including ‘Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient’, ‘Bacterial efflux’ and ‘Minimum…
Why does our local CAP guideline differ from Australian Therapeutic Guidelines?
Kristi, Lorrae and Ayesha have recently joined as AIMED authors– welcome aboard. Here’s a posting from Kristi that unpacks the approach to community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in Hunter New England Health, NSW. In adults, the most common bacterial cause of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is Streptococcus pneumoniae. Other pathogens associated with CAP include Haemophilus influenzae and atypical’ […]
How long should that antibiotic course last?
Guest posting from Ms Kristi Kozierowski, AMS and ICU pharmacist, John Hunter Hospital, NSW, Australia. This is a useful evidence-based summary produced for AAW 2019 – Duration FINAL Kozierowski 2019. Usage welcome with acknowledgement. References Shorter is better : evidence review by Brad Spellberg
Auto-immune encephalitis unpacked: great recent presentation
Guest posting: Dr Thérèse Boyle, Immunology Advanced Trainee Registrar, Health Pathology NSW. Anti-NMDARE (003) Boyle 2018 Take home messages- Autoimmune encephalitis is divided into 2 main categories; classic onco-neuronal encephalitis that is generally paraneoplastic, and limbic encephalitis of which anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis is one of the most common forms. Autoantibodies within these categories can causes […]
AIMED - Let's talk about antibiotics 
Anaerobic susceptibility data – Australia and New Zealand – updated 2019
This posting summarises all the work that can be found – I would welcome advice about any additional studies. Image: Bacteroides fragilis Gram stain from http://microbe-canvas.com/. Australia Teng-JC et al. Victoria-wide data 2018: 416 isolates (Gram pos and neg), almost all were metronidazole, meropenem and augmentin susceptible. 75% of Gram neg isolates were clindamycin susceptible. […]